


White Hat AU One-Shots

by Arola_Tsae



Category: Villainous (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst, Aviophobia, Fluff, Gen, Heroic, Heroic Villainous au, Heroic au, I change their names in future chapters, I gave Slug generic supportive parents so do those count as ocs?, I'll update the tags as we go along, I'm not entirely sure how to tag this but whatevs, Implied death/mass murder, M/M, PTSD, PTSD attack, Shadow Travel, Slug is scared of planes and has a panic/ptsd attack, Snow, Valiant - Freeform, Valiant AU, Villainous au, at all, but not really, death mention - as in people do die but i don't graphically describe it, it's great, lots of blood, main character death mention (but doesn't really happen), not all of these are one-shots/there's a multi-chapter story now, shadowstepping, so many freakin tags, some chapters have angst, some chapters will be pure fluff, some will have both!! :), superpowers that are not cannon confirmed
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-03
Updated: 2018-03-05
Packaged: 2018-11-22 17:26:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 23,896
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11384922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arola_Tsae/pseuds/Arola_Tsae
Summary: This is just gonna be a bunch of pieces of writing about the White Hat au/Heroic au. Most of them are super fluffy, but some are gonna be angst or a mix of both. Just me having fun writing a bunch of stuff :)





	1. Bloody White Hat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Basically, Dr. Slug is up late and catches White Hat coming home absolutely drenched in blood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit: I still have almost no idea how paragraphs work but I went through and, as I promised, I broke up most of the larger paragraphs to make it easier to read along with making a few tweaks here and there. 
> 
> Okay, so seeing as there a bazillion different types of White Hats and Dr. Flug counterparts, I'm just gonna quickly describe my interpretation/version of them:  
> White Hat is a Superhero but for one reason or another he decided to give up his full-time superhero days in favor of selling defensive items to other superheros/regular heroes all across the world. He appears to be a total cinnamon roll to everyone, but he is actually a churro: still cinnamony, still sweet, but also crunchy/not afraid to hurt/kill for the greater good.  
> Dr. Slug is Dr. Flug's counterpart and he used to be a villain until he was captured. Instead of sending him to prison for the rest of his life, White Hat said that he would take him in and use his brilliant mind for good, thus leading to Dr. Slug unwillingly inventing a bunch of super cool force fields and other goody-goody inventions and having White Hat sell them to heroes across the world. He's not very happy about it, but it's better than being in prison (kinda). He just wants to build a super cool death ray and murder a bunch of people with it.  
> Anyways, enough character explanation.  
> Enjoy the fic!!! :)

It was 4 a.m. and Dr. Slug was raiding the kitchen. 

Not in a literal sense, as much as he wished to destroy every part of White Hat's manor, but he was hungry and working on a late night project and he needed food. However, as it was 4 a.m., that awkward time between 3 a.m. (way too late) and 5 a.m. (way too early ), his cravings had become quite strange. 

Not that he cared. All he cared about in that moment was his three peanut butter pickle sandwiches, each with a different variety of condiments and seasonings, his 2 liter bottle of some heavily caffeinated soda that he didn’t care to know the name of, and his coconut potato chips that he was planning to dip in some strawberry jam that he found in the fridge. 

He was about to gather all of his food off the kitchen table and carry it down to his lab when he heard a faint creaking sound behind him. 

Turning abruptly to face that sound, Dr. Slug watched as the strange metal door that White Hat occasionally disappeared into began to open.

No-one in the manor besides White Hat himself knew where it led to besides a long stone staircase leading down to somewhere. White Hat would randomly disappear into it for varying amounts of time, ranging anywhere from ten minutes to weeks at a time. This last trip had lasted three days or so if Slug was remembering things correctly. 

He had a brief moment where his fight or flight instinct kicked in which he quickly crushed down, sneering at himself and his brief moment of fear. White Hat might be an other dimensional demon or something similar, with sharp teeth and a glass square in place of his right eye, but there was no way he would hurt him, the wuss that he was. He had absolutely no reason at all to be scared of him. 

White Hat briskly stepped up the last few steps of the staircase behind the door and both White Hat and Dr. Slug froze upon seeing the other in the kitchen. Dr. Slug was immediately grateful for the table separating the two of them, as well as for the paper bag and goggles he kept over his face to hide his facial expression, because all that was on his face in that moment was shock, horror and a little bit of fear. 

White Hat was covered in blood. His arms and hands were completely drenched in it up to the elbows with absolutely no white visible to that point. As Slug's gaze traveled up the arm he noticed that the more and more white became visible among the blood splatters and spots. His legs were the same way, absolutely saturated in blood from foot to knee and gradually decreasing in density from spots of white against red, to spots of red against white. No piece of clothing was spared, including his hat which had a few flecks of dried blood spattered across the rim and further up. There was even a streak of blood on White Hat's face, smeared and crusted as though someone had tried to wipe it off but gave up halfway through the attempt. 

His face showed only surprise as he stared at Dr. Slug from underneath the door frame. The silence stretched between them for several seconds as each continued to stare at the other without moving. White Hat was the first to break the silence. 

"Hello Dr. Slug!" He grinned widely at Dr. Slug as he stepped out from underneath the door and quickly shut it behind him. He left a smear of blood on the handle as it swung smoothly closed except for another faint creaking sound. Upon hearing that sound, White Hat frowned and turned to face the door, placing his hands on his hips as he regarded it. 

"I'll have to fix that later. There's no place for a squeaky door in this household. It might frighten someone! Dr. Slug!" 

Slug jumped slightly as White Hat turned again to face him, smiling widely once more. Slug realized that his teeth were the only part of his body that lacked any spots of blood, and he tried not to think about how sharp and pointed they were. They had never bothered him before, but, then again, he had never seen White Hat covered in so much blood before. 

The worst he had even seen was when Clementia accidentally slammed her face into a wall while attempting to kiss White Hat and missed, instead giving herself a massive nosebleed. White Hat helped her stop the bleeding but not before she burst into tears and tackle hugged him, burying her face into his chest and staining his vest with blood and tears. Dr. Slug had laughed, both at her pain and at the irony for someone as pure as White Hat to be stained with blood. 

"Doctor?!"

Dr. Slug was jarred from his memories when his name was called a second time by a slightly concerned White Hat. 

"Yes sir?" He replied a little too quickly, his usually stone tongue loosened by the plentiful amount of blood covering his boss. 

White Hat grinned at him once again. "Make sure to remind me to get that fixed tomorrow-er." He pulled back a red sleeve on his left hand to reveal a blood coated watch, wiping its glass face to check the time. "I guess tomorrow has already happened. Ha! How time flies." He returned his bright gaze and smile to Dr. Slug. "Remind me to fix the door later today." 

Before Slug could respond, White Hat frowned. "Dr. Slug! What are you doing up so late, or," he re-examined his watch, "so early? It's 4:06 a.m.! When was the last time you slept?" 

Dr. Slug blinked in surprise underneath his goggles in response to his boss’s concern before thinking back to the last time he slept. "Probably...two days ago...?" Dr. Slug shrugged while rubbing the back of his head. Days tended to blend together for him while he was working on a project. 

"Well that simply won't do!" White Hat slipped his sleeve back over his watch and walked around the table, striding over to Dr. Slug. It took all of Dr. Slug's willpower not to flinch away as he stopped with only a foot of air separating them. The stench of blood was extraordinarily strong and Slug was once again grateful for the bag disguising his face as he scrunched up his nose and curled his lip in disgust. 

“Dr. Slug, I hereby order you to take a break and go get at least 8 hours of sleep. That should be sufficient in recharging your figurative human batteries.” 

It took Dr. Slug a beat to realize what White Hat was asking him to do. 

“But sir, I can’t!” Slug exclaimed, desperate. “I’m so close to a breakthrough for the new Healing Ray you asked me to design. I can’t stop now!”

For once, as much as he hated to admit it, he actually felt good about one of the many devices he had been forced to design while working for White Hat, but he was worried that if he stopped now, he would be unable to finish the prototype and would have to start over, losing at the very least days of progress and possibly all inspiration for the device.

White Hat looked down at Dr. Slug, then at his strange array of snacks he had prepared on the counter. Dr. Slug attempted to stand up straighter when his gaze traveled back to him. White Hat had an uncertain look on his face and Slug took that as a sign that he might change his mind about banning him from working.

“White Hat,” Dr. Slug began, startling himself and White Hat. He usually refused to address him as anything other than ‘sir’ despite White Hat’s wishes otherwise, but he was desperate. “Let me finish what I’m working on, and I promise once I reach a point where I can stop what I’m doing and restart it later, I’ll take a break.” He winced at the word. Geniuses never took breaks, but if taking one was necessary to keep himself working for the night, so be it.

White Hat was obviously shocked. He continued to stare down at Dr. Slug before breaking out another of his signature smiles. “Deal!” 

He turned around and began walking toward the staircase that led up to his office, revealing to Slug that the back of his coat was also soaked in blood, nearly soaked at the bottom but with more and more white showing until there were only a few flecks of blood at the top of his collar.

He took a few steps forward towards the staircase that led up to his office, before twirling back to face Dr. Slug again. “Once you finish your work, why don’t you take the rest of the week off? My only condition is that you sleep for at least eight hours each night and eat something more suitable than that,” and pointed to his snack food.

After that statement, White Hat moved to ascend the staircase when Slug cried out, “Wait!”

White Hat stopped and turned to face Dr. Slug with an eyebrow raised in question.

Dr. Slug paused, considering his question, before gesturing at White Hat’s blood soaked clothes and asked, “What happened?”

White Hat looked down at his clothes and raised his eyebrow high, as if he was seeing the bloodstains for the first time. “Oh, this?” He paused, then looked at Dr. Slug. He seemed to consider something for a few seconds, before shrugging and sitting down on the steps, facing Slug. “I guess I can tell you.” 

He motioned for Dr. Slug to pull up a chair which Slug did, turning it around so that the back was facing White Hat and he could rest his arms and head across the top. He began mindlessly tracing a small knot in the wood on its right side with a finger. 

White Hat fiddled with a button on his bloody sleeve before beginning. “As you already know, it is our business to sell to and supply heroes with the necessary materials to protect and defend themselves and their cities from the forces of evil.” 

Dr. Slug nodded, biting back his urge to correct White Hat in his use of the word “our”. That’s White Hat’s business, not his, but he allowed the slip in favor of continuing the explanation. 

White Hat continued, “While some heroes come in person to pay for and pick up their supplies, most of them order from our catalog and have our products shipped to them all across the world. It is imperative that these shipments are delivered safely for the sake of those who receive them, and each shipment is treated with maximum care and protected under the highest security sans myself.” He smiled and Dr. Slug rolled his eyes.

“However…” White Hat’s usually cheerful face began darken. “Most villains know better than to interfere with my business, and those who don’t are usually too weak and stupid to get away with anything before security takes care of them.” 

Dr. Slug was shocked and ceased his mindless tracing. White Hat’s speech had taken a sharper and angrier tone than he had ever heard him use before. 

“Apparently one of the newer and more powerful villains heard word on the street that I was losing my touch.” White Hat smirked dangerously in a way that almost frightened Dr. Slug. “That I was old, and tired, and all I did nowadays was sit in my tower filling out paperwork while I sent my employees out to deliver my goods, goods that were ripe for the taking.” 

White Hat’s expression darkened even further. “Three days ago one of my shipments along with all personnel escorting it disappeared.” 

Dr. Slug sat up in surprise. This was the first time he had heard of this. 

White Hat took note of it and smiled harshly. “Yes, I know, I asked myself the same question the day the disappearance was reported. Who would be dumb enough to steal from me?” 

White Hat turned to stare at the metal door. “At first, I thought they were going to try and ransom my employees and my goods back to me, and so I waited a full day. Much longer than it usually takes for such demands to travel.” 

Dr. Slug understood this. Any money spent on keeping those being ransomed alive was money that would be wasted if the ransom fell through. Keeping a person alive and healthy was expensive but necessary to receive a full payout.

“But the demands never came.” 

White Hat stood up and began pacing back and forth across the kitchen floor. “It was at this point that I knew I had to take immediate action. I postponed all further shipments and began my investigation.” 

He paused in his trek across the kitchen and looked back at Dr. Slug. “I’ll spare you the boring details but I managed to track the villain back to his lair. Only two levels in and I found one of our force fields with our brand name holding item for item every piece of the shipment that was lost.” White Hat shook his head in disappointment. 

Dr. Slug agreed. That was such a stupid beginner’s mistake. After stealing anything it was crucial to sell or split up the parts immediately afterward so that even if they were found with a piece of White Hat tech, they could claim they stole or bought it from someone else, thus avoiding suspicion and greater punishment.

He resumed his pacing and continued, “I had found my cargo, now I needed to find my employees.” He stopped, facing the wall. Dr. Slug could barely see from his position that his expression had turned sad. “My worst suspicions were correct.” 

Quick as a whip, he turned and advanced on Dr. Slug. Dr. Slug was shocked to see his face was completely engulfed in rage. He jumped up from his chair and backed away, stopping when he felt a wall against his back. White Hat grabbed the top of the chair and stopped, staring down at its seat. “He slaughtered them.”

Dr. Slug was silent. Never had he ever seen White Hat so furious. He even stopped his own breathing, afraid to bring his attention back to him. 

“He slaughtered them.” White Hat repeated, in a more defeated tone clenching the wooden top of the chair. “My employees, my people, good people, good people with families and loved ones that will never see them again.”

Dr. Slug heard a cracking sound and realized White Hat was squeezing the chair so hard that the wood was breaking. White Hat released the chair and looked back up at Dr. Slug. His expression was sad and apologetic as he backed up and returned to his seat on the stairs. 

“My apologies Dr. Slug, I seem to have gotten a little carried away there.” His eye seemed distant and tired. 

Dr. Slug resumed breathing, albeit quietly, and cautiously returned to his seat, refraining from putting his arms on the top of it but keeping the chair’s back between himself and White Hat as a protective barrier. 

White Hat cleared his throat from his position. “Anyways, there was no way I could let him get away with this. I needed to send a message, one that revealed to all villains that not only would such atrocious behavior not be tolerated, but that I am just as powerful as I have always been.” 

With the next sentence, White Hat grinned in a way that Dr. Slug could only describe as evil.

“And starting last night, ending today, I delivered that message to him and all of his henchman. But I’m sure you will hear more about it through whatever networks you have left from the time you were unemployed by me.” 

Dr. Slug once again remained silent. Of course he still had contacts that kept him up to date on the happenings of the outside world. White Hat had even subtly encouraged him to do so, saying that it was best to gain information from all sources, along with a warning that if he leaked any important information about White Hat Inc., there would be severe consequences, which Slug adhered to. It would be incredibly stupid to leak any information that could be directly linked back to him while he was being held here. 

Now, staring back at his blood soaked boss, he was really glad that he had followed that advice. 

White Hat smoothly stood up from his place on the stairs and gave Dr. Slug a bow. “Now if you excuse me, I have some other business I must attend to.” 

Without waiting for a response, White Hat turned and disappeared up the steps leading to his office. 

Dr. Slug remained in his position for a few seconds before standing up, grabbing all the food off the table, and booking it down to his lab. 

His understanding of White Hat had been completely and irreparably destroyed. He had thought that he was one of those “pure” heroes, the ones that refused to kill or even harm anyone, which is why he started the defense business. He had heard rumors about his days as an actively serving hero and how vicious he could be but after living with White Hat for so long he had assumed that those were all lies, exaggerations, or simply some of the more bloodthirsty heroes acting in White Hat’s name. 

He finally reached his lab and sat down at his workbench, picking up a couple tools and almost began to work on his prototype before stopping as a thought crossed his mind. He was so relieved he had never done anything evil enough to direct the same rage White Hat had just shown him to himself, and decided right then to never underestimate White Hat again. 

After that thought passed he continued his work on his prototype, finishing its assembly sometime around 7 a.m. Deciding it was in his best interest to adhere to his promise, he walked upstairs from the lab to the ground floor. 

As he passed the kitchen he glanced inside and stopped and took a double take. Everything was spotless. There was no trace of blood anywhere.

Dr. Slug crossed the kitchen and stared in the place where the cracked kitchen chair was meant to be. 

In its place was a completely identical unbroken wooden chair. 

He pulled it out from where it was tucked into the table and bent down and examined every inch of it. There was no doubt this was the same chair. It even had the small knot on its right side. He stood up and stared at it for a moment, then left it untucked and made his way to his bedroom, beginning to suspect that he had dreamt up the entire thing. 

As he pushed open the door to his bedroom he froze in place. A clean White Hat was laying down on a neatly made bed that Dr. Slug had never made in his entire time that he had lived in the manor, reading a book. 

White Hat looked up from his book and exclaimed, “Dr. Slug!” 

He jumped up from Dr. Slug’s bed and grinned, holding the book in one hand. “I hope you don’t mind, but I went ahead and changed your sheets and washed your blankets. I’ve been doing a little tidying up all over the house if you know what I mean,” and winked. At least, he blinked his only eye in a way that seemed like a wink. 

Dr. Slug soon got over his shock and bristled. “Get out of my room.” He spoke low and dangerously, opening the door all the way to step inside the room and point outside the room to emphasize his words.

White Hat pouted. “Is that all the thanks I get for just trying to make sure you get the best day of sleep possible?”

Dr. Slug refrained from answering and only continued to point out the door. 

White Hat sighed and walked towards the door.

“Oh! Before I forget.” He turned to face Slug, still smiling as brightly as ever. “I would really appreciate it if you would avoid mentioning what happened last night and this morning to Clementia or 6.0.6., along with any other employees of mine. It would be the best thing for all of us.” 

He put a special emphasis on the word all and looked at Slug mischievously as he said it. 

Dr. Slug was about to reply with something curt and rude in response when he noticed something. There was a small fleck of red staining the square piece of glass in place of White Hat’s right eye. So he swallowed his words and simply nodded. 

“Good lad.” White Hat smiled wider and patted him on the shoulder and walked out his door. Before he got far down the hallway, Dr. Slug exited his room and cried out, “Wait!” 

White Hat stopped and turned to face Dr. Slug with an eyebrow raised in question.

Dr. Slug paused and gestured to his right eye. White Hat looked at him, confused, before reaching up to feel his eyeglass. His eye widened as he felt the speck under his fingers and he exclaimed, “Oops! Missed a spot.”

Licking his finger he quickly rubbed at the glass until the spot was gone. “Thanks Slug!” White Hat said brightly before walking away.

Dr. Slug watched him walk down the hall until he turned a corner and disappeared from view before returning to his bedroom. 

He locked the door and proceeded to strip off his lab coat and gently remove his paper bag and goggles. Without bothering to change his clothes, he fell on his bed on top of the newly cleaned blankets and turned his body until he was facing the ceiling. Closing his eyes the last image he thought of before falling asleep was that of a blood soaked White Hat grinning at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh. This thing is the longest fanfiction I've written so far and it took me freaking 6.5 hours to finish before I got somewhat happy with it. It was fun tho and I regret nothing :3
> 
> About the mysterious door. I don't really have a reason for it besides I think it's cool. It's not canon in the show but I just really like the idea of White Hat having some mysterious underground room where he does all of his dirty work for the greater good of his business/the world n'stuff. I hoped you liked it!
> 
> Btw, I'm probably going to be writing a series of one-shots of scenes that I've imagined for this au and I'm just going to post them all here in chapter form.  
> (The next one is might involve snow) :D
> 
> Thanks for reading!!!


	2. SNOW DAY!! (with a side of breakfast)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The title is pretty self-explanatory. :) It's a pure fluff fic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, this one is even longer than the last one. 
> 
> Really fast, I want to thank everyone who gave kudos, bookmarked, and/or commented on the last fic and said such positive and nice things about it. It really inspired me to keep writing and it made me super happy too!! :D Thanks again!!! <3
> 
> So I like to imagine that White Hat is basically what Black Hat is (eldritch demon or whatever) but good. SO I thought the same would apply to Clementia too, so she can do everything Demencia can do but she’s a sweetheart and I read somewhere on tumblr that she's like Mabel from Gravity Falls but nicer, so I tried to write her like that. ^_^ I also imagine she has a huge crush on White Hat just like Demencia does with Black Hat, and just like Black Hat, White Hat is not interested. He's a lot nicer about it tho. She keeps chasing after him even though he’s made it clear he’s not interested in her in that way, but I don’t blame her because, let’s face it, White Hat is a total dreamboat (Black Hat is too but he's a different type of dreamboat). ;)  
> I know what I said earlier about 6.0.6. but I changed my mind (oops) and as I was writing him, I decided to make him more apathetic. You'll see what I mean.  
> I also added "paperhat" to the tags because even though nothing I've written so far is explicitly paperhat, mostly adding little hints here and there, it will be more obvious in the future.  
> Also,  
> Tsundere Dr. Slug towards everyone is my jam. ;)

Clementia sat up in her blue and pink canopy bed and yawned, stretching her arms above her head as she did so. She looked around her room and smiled happily. The sight of the many cute pictures that decorated her walls filled her with joy. They consisted mainly of adorable photos of puppies and kittens doing silly things, along with a few gorgeous paintings of unicorns that were a gift from White Hat.

Thinking of White Hat made her blush and giggle to herself, bringing a hand to her face and sighing wistfully. He was so dreamy. All she wanted to do was hug and kiss and cuddle him all day. 

Now that she thought about it, he was probably down in the kitchen right now making them all a wonderful breakfast and just waiting for his morning hug from her. 

With that thought, she launched herself out of bed. Better not keep him waiting. 

She quickly changed out of her soft unicorn pajamas into her usual outfit. She brushed through her long puffy hair at an astonishing speed before pulling her unicorn hood up over her head and checking herself in the full length mirror she kept on the back of her bedroom door. She proceeded to make a few cutesy poses and faces, winking and sticking her tongue out and making two peace signs with her hands, then spinning around and and stopping once she faced the mirror again to smile big and hold her hands in front of her to form a heart shape. 

She spun around once more for fun, then fluffed her red bangs while staring up at the picture of White Hat she kept taped in the right corner of the mirror. It was surrounded with red and blue heart stickers that she had stuck there herself. She kissed two fingers on her right hand and pressed them against White Hat’s mouth, giggling softly. Then she opened her bedroom door and skipped down the hallway to the stairs. Jumping on the banister she rode it all the way down to the ground floor, laughing joyfully as the wind blew against her face and made her hair fly wildly behind her.

Sure enough, she could catch the scent of breakfast food wafting in from the kitchen. Jumping off the banister and racing through the doorway that led to the kitchen, she halted in her tracks as soon as she saw White Hat with his back to her cooking on the stove.

At the sound of her sneakers skidding to a stop, White Hat glanced over his shoulder and grinned at her, making her heart skip a beat. His trench coat was off and resting on a kitchen chair, revealing a blue button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up.

“Good morning Clementia! Would you like some bacon and eggs? I also made some orange jui-”

“White Hat!” 

She launched herself at him, spreading her arms wide, ready to give him a hug. With inhumanly fast reflexes White Hat spun around and looped his cane under her hood, lifting her to the side, away from him and the hot stove. 

“Clementia, as much as I would love to let you hug me, I must refrain until you promise that this is a strictly platonic hug and that you will not attempt to kiss me.”

Clementia paused for a few seconds, then gave him reluctant nod from the end of his cane, pouting unhappily. He gently placed her on the floor and she leapt forward, wrapping her arms around his tall frame. “Someday it won’t just be a friend hug,” she thought to herself as she gave him a tight squeeze, which he happily returned before leading her to the kitchen table. 

The table was a perfect wooden circle with four matching chairs directly set across from each other, one of them much larger than the other three.

He sat her down in one of the smaller chairs then swiftly set a plate, cup and utensils in front of her. Following that, he walked back to the stove, picking up a pan and carrying it over to the table. From the pan he set two pieces of bacon on her plate along with a heaping pile of eggs. Picking a large orange pitcher off the table he began gracefully pouring orange juice into her glass. As he finished filling her cup, a loud briiiing went off behind him, followed by the sound of a toaster going off. 

As White Hat left to get the toast, Clementia dug in, shoveling eggs and bacon into her mouth and washing it all down with orange juice. It was totally delicious, and one more item to add to her list of why she adored White Hat.

With a clink White Hat set a small plate with two pieces of perfectly buttered toast on the table next to Clementia. Clementia looked up from her food and swallowed hastily.

“Thanks!”

“My pleasure.”

He sat down across the table from her and folded his hands under his chin, smiling as he watched her eat. Clementia took a bite of toast with a crunch and hummed happily. Then she noticed the two empty chairs next to him and frowned, swallowing her bite of toast.

“White Hat?”

“Yes my dear?”

“Where’s Sluggie and 6.0.6.”

“Ah. 6.0.6. already had breakfast and is taking his mid-morning nap and I believe Dr. Slug is sleeping in his lab. He said he needed to work on one of his projects but I think he was just using that as an excuse to get me to leave after I woke him up to stop him from drooling on a force field schematic.”

“Oh.” Clementia took a few more bites of breakfast. It was strange to her that someone as smart as Dr. Slug and worked for hours on end to create so many wondrous inventions could be so lazy and sluggish sometimes. Wait a second.

Clementia burst into laughter, leaving White Hat to stare at her in surprise. 

“What’s so funny?”

“Dr. Slug, ahaha, Sluggie, is SLUGGISH!!!” She started slapping her hand against the table, unable to contain her mirth. White Hat began to chuckle as that mirth began to spread, and pretty soon they were both laughing heartily at the irony behind Dr. Slug’s name.

Eventually they both calmed down enough for Clementia to finish eating. 

“Would you like any more?”

“No thank you. Thanks White Hat!

“Anytime.”

With that, White Hat rose from his seat and collected her dishes, placing them in the sink. He rinsed off his hands then dried them with a towel that was hanging up on the stove handle. 

“If that is all, there is something I would like to show you.” White Hat said, unrolling his sleeves and picking up his coat from the chair. He put it on then extended his arm out to her, which she hurriedly rushed up to accept.

As they walked out from the kitchen into the entry hall, Clementia stared longingly at the two huge curving staircases on either side of the room. She really wanted to hop on the railing of one of them and slide down like she did on the other staircase this morning, but there was no way she was relinquishing her grip on White Hat’s arm. 

White led her down one of the staircases and continued walking towards the huge double doors that served as the main entrance and exit to White Hat’s mansion. There, he slipped his arm out from hers and reached towards the doors, firmly grasping the handle to the right hand door. As he opened it, Clementia was momentarily blinded by the light that flooded into the room from outside. Blinking her eyes rapidly as they adjusted to the light, Clementia was momentarily confused by the how everything outside was covered in white. Then she came to a realization.

“WHITE HAT!!!! IT SNOWED!!” 

Clementia immediately leapt outside, leggings, bare skin and all, and dove into the snow, rolling around and laughing. She rolled onto her back and started making a snow angel. She stood up to admire her work, ignoring the clumps of snow that were now stuck in her hair. Then she came to another realization.

“White Hat! We have to get 6.0.6. and Sluggie out here!!”

White Hat smiled at her from the doorway, not having moved from his spot since she ran outside.

“My thoughts exactly.”

He beckoned her inside and she practically threw herself through the doors, landing on all fours and shaking herself like a dog, flinging chunks of snow from her hair which White Hat neatly dodged.

Once she finished shaking herself, she stood up, glancing at White Hat. “I'll get 6.0.6., you get Sluggie.”

With that, she was off. Clementia ignored the stairs and instead climbed straight up the wall, launching herself over the railing and running towards the stairs that led to 6.0.6.’s room. She skipped two steps at at time, stopping by her room on the way up. 

She burst through the door, running inside and ripping open her closet. Kicking off her pink sneakers she grabbed a pair of blue snow pants and pulled them over her already damp legs. Then she put on a pair of grey snow boots, tucking them under her pants. Finally, she grabbed a pink coat and a pair of gloves and raced out her door up to 6.0.6.’s room, hastily putting on both items as she jumped up the stairs. 

Like her bedroom door she slammed open the door to 6.0.6.’s room and leapt inside.

“6.0.6.! It snowed!!”

The walls were painted black and purple, and covered with heavy metal band posters. 6.0.6. looked up from his white pillow bed that didn't match with anything else in the room, then growled and turned over with his back facing Clementia.

Undeterred, Clementia bounced over and fell on top of him. Her entire body vibrated as 6.0.6. rumbled in protest, burying his muzzle into his bed.

“C’mon ya big bear, let’s go play!” she said while drumming her hands against his back.

6.0.6. gave no response, breathing in and out as if he was asleep.

“Puh-leeeaaase!!! It’ll be super fun!”

6.0.6. heaved a deep sigh, enduring a few more seconds of drum pats before slowly standing up. Clementia slid off his back and onto the floor, then skipped to the doorway.

“C’mon, c’mon, c’mon!”

Clementia waited until 6.0.6. padded over to the doorway then ran out into the hall. She stood by the stairs until 6.0.6. almost made it over to her and began climbing down, pausing every few steps to look behind her and make sure he was still following. 

As they got nearer to the kitchen, Clementia began to hear the sound of muffled shouts of protest traveling up the stairs.

Clementia was the first to arrive in the kitchen and be greeted with the sight of a very angry Dr. Slug being carried by a very calm White Hat. White Hat was carrying him with one arm in a way that trapped Dr. Slug’s arms against his sides, leaving him to kick his legs out fruitlessly behind him in an effort to escape. His lab coat was nowhere to be seen, having been replaced with a dark red winter coat, and his usual shoes had been replaced by snow boots of the same color.

“Put me down White Hat!”

“Nonsense! If I do, you’ll simply run back to your lab. Now is the time to have fun!”

“I was having fun down there.”

“No you weren’t, you were sleeping. It’s time to take a break from sleeping and inventing and go outside!”

White Hat stopped in his journey towards the front doors when he saw Clementia and beamed at her. 

“Clementia! Have you retrieved 6.0.6.?”

6.0.6. gave him his answer as he stomped down the last few steps, still looking grumpy from being woken up from his nap. 

“There you are 6.0.6.! I trust you slept well?

Once he saw 6.0.6., Dr. Slug perked up and resumed his struggle with renewed energy as he attempted to break free from White Hat’s grip.

“6.0.6.! Help me!”

6.0.6. looked at Dr. Slug and snorted. Then he thumped away, heading towards the lobby.

“Traitor!”

Eventually they all made it out of the house and into the front yard. 6.0.6. immediately flopped on the ground and began snoring. Clementia decided the best possible course of action for her to take in that moment would be to bury him in snow. Scooping up large armfuls of the stuff and placing it over 6.0.6., she began to cover him in snow. Once he was completely covered, she glanced back to check how Dr. Slug and White Hat were doing. 

Dr. Slug was standing in the snow with his arms crossed, obviously pouting. White Hat was gesturing towards the snow but Slug kept vigorously shaking his head, causing White Hat to pout as well.

Clementia decided to give him a little help. Bending down, she grabbed a bunch of snow and began patting it together. Standing back up, she finished forming it into a perfect snowball. As she reached back with her arm she hesitated. She didn’t want to risk hitting White Hat.

Then, out of nowhere, a couple of neighbor kids appeared across the yard on the other side of the fence that surrounded White Hat’s mansion, waving furiously and calling out to White Hat. With an apologetic grin to Dr. Slug, White Hat turned away and began walking towards the children. Slug leaned against the side of the house, arms folded, emanating a strong aura of hatred and displeasure. Perfect.

“Hey Sluggie!”

Dr. Slug turned his head to address Clementia only to receive a faceful of snow. Dr. Slug stumbled a few steps to the side, raising a hand to his bag and staring at her incredulously before pointing at her and pulling a finger across his throat. Then he ran inside.

Clementia only had a few seconds to feel guilty about chasing Slug away when he reappeared through the doors carrying a huge metal gun of some sort with a giant funnel at the end of it. After scooping up a bunch of snow and dumping it into the funnel, Dr. Slug picked it up, placing one end on his shoulder and aiming the other at Clementia.

“EAT THIS!”

It began launching volley after volley of snowballs in her direction. Clementia was hit by the first snowball and was knocked onto her back, breathless.

She heard Dr. Slug begin laughing maniacally as she scrambled up and ran for cover, crouching low to the ground with her arms covering her face, then diving behind the snowy mound that contained 6.0.6. 

Little did Slug know, but 6.0.6. had fallen blissfully to sleep under that mound, and as soon as dozens of high-powered snowballs began pounding against his side, he awoke, furious. Roaring, 6.0.6. burst from his snowy prison, shaking the snow from his fur. Ignoring the onslaught of snowballs, 6.0.6. reached down to the ground and picked up a mound of snow, forming it into a giant snowball and chucking it at Dr. Slug. 

Dr. Slug dove to the side and the huge snowball flew past him, exploding against the side of the house.

The fight was on. 

Clementia took advantage of Dr. Slug’s distraction and began pushing up snow to form a makeshift snow fort. Lying flat on her belly, she started making snowballs, lining them up next to her in reserve. Once she had made about ten snowballs, she peeked over the wall for reconnaissance purposes. 

Dr. Slug had run out of ammo, and was struggling to reload while a merciless 6.0.6. loomed over him, raising another giant snowball high.

Clementia took this moment to throw a snowball at 6.0.6. hitting him directly on the back of his head. 

6.0.6. whipped around, momentarily forgetting Dr. Slug and heaved his snow boulder in Clementia’s direction. Clementia ducked behind her snow fort, which was perfectly suited to block all snowballs thrown horizontally. However, 6.0.6. had chucked his snowball in an arc that curved neatly in the air over the fort and directly onto Clementia.

Clementia sat straight up with a completely shocked look on her face and a pile of snow on her head. 6.0.6. grinned for the first time since coming outside, baring his sharp teeth while huffing at Clementia, laughing in his own bear way. Clementia shook her head rapidly back and forth, flinging snow in all directions before laughing too and falling backwards into the snow. 

6.0.6.’s laughter was interrupted by a barrage of snowballs fired from Dr. Slug, having been given plenty of time to reload as a result of Clementia’s intervention. 

The snowball fight continued like this for several minutes, with 6.0.6. being pounded with snowballs from Dr. Slug and Clementia while building a huge snowball to throw at either of them. Clementia got hit the most with the giant snowballs, but sometimes 6.0.6. was able to catch Dr. Slug off guard while he was reloading. Clementia threw a few snowballs at Dr. Slug too, sneaking up behind him and chucking them at his back while he was preoccupied with 6.0.6. until he directed his gun towards her and she had to run back to cover. 

Suddenly, Clementia glimpsed movement in the corner of her eye and turned her head to see White Hat strolling towards them, completely at ease, neighborhood kids nowhere to be seen.

“What are-” was all he could get out when Dr. Slug turned his gun on him and hit him with three consecutive snowballs in the face, chest, and stomach, knocking him to the ground. 

Everyone stopped in their places and stared down at the fallen hero. White Hat sat up, wiped the snow from his face, and began to smile. The smile grew inhumanly large as he stood up and sprouted four long tentacle arms from his back that reached down to pick up snow off the ground.

“Well c’mon then,” White Hat said, with a challenging sparkle in his eye. “If it’s a fight you want, then it’s a fight you’ll get!”

If there was chaos before, it was nothing compared to the war that was now taking place in front of the White Hat mansion. White Hat threw countless snowballs with his four arms at them all with terrifying accuracy, causing Dr. Slug, Clementia, and even 6.0.6. to dive for shelter. Dr. Slug ran to the east side of the house during the first onslaught of snowballs and was using the side of the building as cover, responding with newfound ferocity towards the White Hat threat. 6.0.6. ran to Clementia’s snow fort and joined forces with her, lobbing huge snowballs at White Hat and Dr. Slug, distracting them both while Clementia crept around with a surprising amount of stealth, hitting either White Hat or Dr. Slug with a sudden flurry of snowballs, then fleeing back to the safety of her fort. 

Hours later, and their advanced combat snow-fare devolved into two teams throwing snowballs at each other periodically and ducking down behind their forts. White Hat’s four extra arms were gone and he had built a snow fort that Dr. Slug had taken refuge behind. Dr. Slug’s gun was long broken, not meant for the use of snow as ammo, and he was forced to build and throw snowballs by hand. This made him to be more careful with how he used his throws, curving them like 6.0.6. did in his first strike against Clementia over their fort wall, which in turn forced Clementia and 6.0.6. to increase the height and width of their wall to make it harder for Dr. Slug to predict their positions. 

Then, a white flag appeared over White Hat and Dr. Slug’s fort wall.

“Truce, truce! We-”

“You,” Clementia heard Dr. Slug correct White Hat from behind their fort.

“I propose a truce!”

“What are your terms?” Clementia called out, poking her head out in the open. 

“I propose a ceasefire in exchange for everyone coming inside and enjoying some delicious hot chocolate which I personally make.”

Clementia ducked down and looked at 6.0.6. 

“Should we accept his terms?” she whispered conspiratorially, giggling softly. 

6.0.6. rolled his eyes and stood up, walking towards the house.

“We accept!” Clementia yelled as she scrambled up from her fort and followed 6.0.6., brushing snow off of her as she walked. She turned to see White Hat and Dr. Slug walk out from behind their fort and saw White Hat offer his arm to Dr. Slug, which he refused. In response, White Hat scooped Slug off the ground, carrying him bridal style towards the house. This time, Dr. Slug only fought for a few seconds before resigning himself to being carried, groaning loudly.

Clementia pouted. Dr. Slug was so lucky. She wished she was the one being carried. 

Without waiting for them to catch up she hurried through the doors and this time used the stairs instead of climbing up the wall. Eventually she made her way to the kitchen where 6.0.6. was already waiting, sitting down in the largest chair and looking bored. 

“That was fun, wasn’t it 6.0.6.!” Clementia bubbled out, already perking up from her moment of jealousy at Dr. Slug. 

6.0.6. shrugged, which made Clementia gasp. 

“6.0.6.! That’s the first time you’ve responded to that question without growling and shaking your head! That means you must have loved it!” Clementia squealed out joyfully, running over and giving him a bear hug. 

6.0.6. stuck his tongue out, enduring the hug for a short moment before shaking her off. 

Unbothered by his actions, she took a seat next to 6.0.6. just as White Hat walked in the room, still carrying Dr. Slug. 

Clementia was surprised when Dr. Slug didn’t immediately retreat down to his lab, instead taking the seat across from 6.0.6. and next to her. Clementia beamed at him, a look he returned with a blank stare. Their attention was turned to White Hat as he began to hum as he prepared their hot chocolate.

Within in a few minutes, White Hat set three steaming mugs and one jug of hot chocolate down on the table. 6.0.6. immediately grabbed the jug and began guzzling hot chocolate. White Hat took the last remaining seat between Dr. Slug and 6.0.6., pushing two of the mugs towards Clementia and Dr. Slug while keeping one to himself. 

Clementia was about to take a sip of her hot coco when White Hat raised his mug in the air, attracting her attention.

“Everyone! I propose a toast!”

“To what?” Clementia questioned, already raising her mug. 

“To peace, prosperity, and snow!” 

Clementia and White Hat clinked their mugs together then looked expectantly at 6.0.6. and Dr. Slug. 

6.0.6. paused and clacked his jug against theirs, growling something unintelligible before returning to his drinking. 

Dr. Slug fiddled with his mug for a second before sighing and raising it up in the air. 

“To snow.”

“To snow!” Clementia and White Hat echoed, clinking their mugs against his and taking a drink. The hot chocolate was the perfect temperature, creamy and sweet, but not too sweet. 

Dr. Slug fiddled with his mug a little more, then stood up, taking his mug with him.

“I’m going to head down to my lab. I’ve been away from my projects for too long.”

With that, Slug stood up from the table and walked towards the staircase that led down to his lab. Right as he set foot on the stairs, he hesitated, just long enough for Clementia to call out, “WAIT!” and stand up from the table. 

He half-turned around only to be tackle hugged by Clementia. By some miracle he managed to keep his hot chocolate from spilling. The hug was quickly joined by White Hat, wrapping his arms around them both and giving a good squeeze. 

Clementia looked at 6.0.6., who was staring back at them from the table. 

“C’mon 6.0.6.! You know you want to.” she called out to him, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. 

With a sigh, 6.0.6. stood up from the table and ambled over, wrapping his arms around all three of them.

“Haven’t you guys ever heard of personal space,” Dr. Slug muttered under his breath. Clementia decided not to say anything about the fact that he was leaning into the hug, edging his arms up around her and White Hat.

Clementia hummed happily. She loved her family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm gonna be honest I wasn't entirely sure how to write Clementia or 6.0.6. since there's not a lot of available material out there on either of them so I just went with how I felt each of them would be like. I love the idea of a monster 6.0.6. but, for the sake of the fic and in order to fit in maximum fluff, I made him more like an apathetic angsty teen. ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ I might write something about that in the future tho.  
> I also decided to write this from Clementia's point of view because I have another fic in the works that is very White Hat and Dr. Slug orientated so I thought I'd change it up a bit in between. I also thought it would be super fun because Clementia is adorable and I love her /)^3^(\ (and it was!!).  
> Anyways, thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed this! Stay tuned for more. :)


	3. A Hero's Woe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dr. Slug finds White Hat crying in his office and has no idea what to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Firstly, I'd like to apologize for the lack of activity. College hit me like a ton of bricks and I'm still struggling to adjust to everything, leading to me not being able to post or write in a long time. T_T
> 
> Thank you for all the lovely comments about the last chapter. I always try to reply to every comment, even though it might take me a while to do so, because they mean so much to me. I know I've said it before, but you guys are amazing, and I'm so happy that I have other people to share my love of this au/fandom/show with. Thank you!!!!
> 
> Anyways, I've been sitting on this story for a while now. I wanted to post the third chapter of the little story arc I was working on before this but, once again, college happened, and I don't expect many more opportunities to write/post for a while. I am going to finish that arc but I thought I'd offer this until I get my next chance to write.
> 
> I must say, it is really freakin’ hard to write a character that I headcannon swears like a sailor and still keep everything censored/child friendly. I had to censor one word with **** because I could not think of any replacement that would carry the same meaning. I honestly don’t care about swearing/swear words, but I used to, and for the sake of those people who are out there that prefer to avoid tons of profanity I try not to write any unless I don’t have any other choice.
> 
> Enjoy!

Dr. Slug unhappily trudged his way upstairs to White Hat’s office. He needed some new materials for his current project and they were dangerous enough that he had to request them from White Hat directly. He hated doing it because his requests were almost never denied and he swore it was just an excuse White Hat made up to see him.

Dr. Slu finally made it to the top of the staircase and was greeted by a single white door with the word, “Welcome!” written in blue paint in White Hat’s signature loopy cursive. 

He opened the door and the first thing he noticed was that the only source of light in the room was coming from the staircase behind him, which was strange. White Hat’s office was always lit, whether by natural light during the day from the huge window that took up the majority of the walls, or electricity by night from the huge crystal chandelier that dominated the ceiling. But even then the window remained uncovered, unveiling a perfect view of the city. 

Now the curtains that Dr. Slug had assumed were only for decoration had been drawn across the window, blocking all light from outside. He was barely able to identify the shadowy shapes circling the room as the numerous desks, filing cabinets, and computer stations White Hat used to run the company. 

He noticed that just to his left on the other side of the room one of those desks had been overturned. The chair that was paired with it was lying on its side with the back facing the door, and while he couldn’t see anything behind the chair, he did recognize the trembling white top hat sticking out above it.

“White Hat?”

White Hat jumped up from the floor, accidentally shoving the chair away as he did so. He swerved to face Dr. Slug, quickly wiping his face in the process and putting his arms behind his back. Dr. Slug noticed a faint purple sheen reflecting over his eye along with light purple streaks leading down his face.

"Why, hello there Doctor, I wasn't expecting-"

"Are you crying?" 

White Hat looked taken aback by his question and hesitated, looking away guiltily. 

"...No.”

"Holy-you are crying." Dr. Slug stared at White Hat’s tearstained face in disbelief. "Why?"

 

White Hat wiped his face once more and straightened his posture.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” He insisted indignantly. “I’m perfectly fine. Now leave.”

He finished his statement by pointing towards the door to dismiss Dr. Slug, accidentally revealing that his usually white sleeve was covered in purple stains. 

Upon realizing his mistake he swiftly hid his arm behind himself again and gave Slug a strained smile, obviously attempting to convince Dr. Slug that he was okay with the single gesture. 

He was not convinced.

“Shut up, you’re crying, stop denying it, tell me why.” 

Slug folded his arms stubbornly as he spoke and tilted his head to the side, tapping his foot on the floor while waiting impatiently for White Hat’s answer.

White Hat’s phony smile was wiped from his face and he looked down at the floor. A few tears escaped from his eye and dripped off his face but White Hat didn’t seem to notice. He took a deep breath and exhaled it, frowning deeply. 

"I...would rather not explain. Could you please leave and...allow me to suffer in peace?" White Hat asked with a sad smile, his voice soft and pleading.

Slug turned around and was halfway out the door before he paused, lingering for a reason he could not figure out. Maybe it was the materials request, maybe it was his unanswered question, or maybe it was the thinly masked agony he saw behind White Hat’s sad little smile, the brokenness of his voice and the bleak despair in his tear filled eye. 

Dr. Slug told himself it was to satisfy his curiosity, and stepped back into White Hat's office, leaving the door open behind him. 

He walked across the room to where White Hat was standing. He once again folded his arms and stared at White Hat. 

White Hat returned the stare, at first confused, then sad, then desperate. He reached out towards Dr. Slug and flinched back, dropping his hands to his sides.

Instead he began urgently searching for something behind Dr. Slug’s goggles. For what, Dr. Slug had no idea. The search went on for several seconds before White Hat looked away, giving a defeated sigh. 

Without words, White Hat made his way to the overturned desk and effortlessly flipped it over, returning it to its correct orientation. He then picked up the chair from the ground and placed it right side up on the floor, and gestured towards it. 

Dr. Slug took the hint and sat down in the chair, looking to White Hat. 

White Hat sat on the desk and fiddled with his thumbs before looking up hopefully at Dr. Slug.

“Are you sure you wish to listen to a silly hero’s woes? I’m sure you have much more important work to be done. Surely you came up for a different reason other than-”

“No. Start talking.” 

White Hat glanced to the side.

“Well you see, you know Silver Fog. We had a bit of a spat a few hours ago and she insulted my hat which hurt my feelings quite a lot-”

“Shut up.”

White Hat closed his mouth. 

Dr. Slug stood up from his chair and walked towards White Hat, placing his hands on the desk on either side of him and leaning uncomfortably close until they were almost touching, causing White to lean back and avert his eye. 

“Look at me.”

White Hat looked at Dr. Slug, attempting to and absolutely failing at hiding the guilt on his face. 

“Stop lying to me.”

“I’m not lying! She really did insult my hat and I did not appreciate-”

“Tell me why you’re crying.”

“But-”

“No.”

“Can’t I-”

“No.”

“It would be easier if you just-”

“No.”

“Please, I-”

“WHITE HAT!”

White Hat jumped and almost fell off the desk before Dr. Slug caught him by the vest. With each pleading word and each stony reply, White Hat had leaned further away and Dr. Slug had leaned further in until Dr. Slug had startled White Hat and kept him from falling. Now they were almost parallel to the surface of the desk. 

Dr. Slug kept hold of White Hat’s shirt and came so close until his bag barely brushed against White Hat’s face, causing him to flinch and stare into Dr. Slug’s eyes, terrified.

Dr. Slug returned the stare for a increasingly long amount of time, letting White Hat squirm under his penetrating gaze until Slug moved his head next to White Hat’s and began to speak softly in a low and threatening manner.

“I’m going to let go of you now, and sit down in that chair. Once I do, you’re going to face me like a civilised adult and tell me what’s wrong. Got it?”

White Hat was silent. Dr. Slug waited for a second before repeating himself in a deadly whisper.

“Got it?”

White Hat closed his eye and held it closed before nodding once. Dr. Slug let go of the vest. White Hat flailed his arms and caught himself on the edge of the desk, barely keeping himself from upending the desk again. 

After straightening up from his position over White Hat, Dr. Slug walked back over to the chair and took a seat, crossing his legs evilly. He put his fingers together and as soon as he saw White Hat sit up to stare at him fearfully he gestured with his right hand, inviting him to proceed.

White Hat took a deep breath and was about to speak before Dr. Slug cut him off.

“Don’t lie.”

White Hat gave him a rueful glance, then gazed down at the floor. His eye began to swell with tears again, but none of escaped before he spoke.

"I killed a boy today."

 

Well, ****. Now it was Dr. Slug’s turn to feel guilty. That was not the answer he was expecting at all. He was expecting to hear some sob story about a natural disaster that occurred or something similar, or even another story about how White Hat had lost a bunch of employees and was shortly going to send another deadly message that his people were not to be touched. If that had been the case Slug was planning to offer to help find and destroy the people behind it (totally not just because he wanted to see White Hat in action doling out murderous helpings of righteous fury). But killing a kid...he wasn’t sure how to react. 

"He was young, in his late teens I think, and brilliant. In fact, he reminded me of you." He said, looking up at Dr. Slug with a dry smile that vanished as quickly as it appeared.

"But he was suffering.” White Hat bit his lip mournfully. “The world had wronged him in a terrible way, and he was vengeful.” 

His expression soured. “A greater villain found him and promised vengeance if he would work for him. Together, they built a series of bombs and planted them in hundreds of cities, with the plans that they would ransom those cities and use those riches to fund all sorts of hideous schemes.”

“With an anonymous tip, I took a team of heroes to their secret lair. I confronted the villain and the boy and served as a distraction while the other heroes searched for a way to disarm the bombs. We fought and argued and bargained. The villain declared that unless we gave him a huge sum of money in the next hour, he would set off the bombs, killing millions. I told him it was impossible and he shortened the time limit to thirty minutes, then ten, then five.”

“Then, out of nowhere, the boy shot and killed the villain. He told me that the villain had always planned to let the bombs go off, whether he had the money or no, and that there was only one way to shut them down.”

White Hat stopped, and stayed silent. Dr. Slug didn’t know what to do. But White Hat still hadn’t resumed talking and the tears had started leaking from his eye and streaming down his face again. 

Finally, Dr. Slug cut through the silence.

“White Hat?” He questioned in an abnormally soft tone.

White Hat started and glanced up at Dr. Slug.

“I’m sorry, I-” His voice broke. He coughed and cleared his throat before continuing.

 

"He told me that the only way to stop the bomb was to kill him."

As soon as he finished the sentence, White Hat’s face was engulfed in pain as the tears fell down his face. Dr. Slug almost told him to stop talking but White Hat continued before he got the chance. His voice sounded even more broken than before, but unable to stop the flow of words, a slave to the story spilling from his mouth.

“Secretly he had designed it so that if he was killed, the bombs would permanently disarm themselves. He did it in self defense, to make sure that the villain wouldn’t dare betray him before the job was done and he received his share of the money. When he told the villain about it, he was furious, and that’s when he learned that no other way of disarming the bombs had been planned.”

“With one minute on the clock, the boy scientist told me to shoot him.” White Hat’s shoulders began to shake. “I didn’t want to do it. I begged him to find another way. I called all the heroes I could. None of them knew how to shut down any of their bombs. One hero managed to rip his from his city and launch it into space, and was racing to the next to do the same, but there were too many bombs and not enough time.”

White Hat bowed his head, and Dr. Slug could see the tears falling straight from his eyes to floor.

“With one second on the countdown, and hundreds of cities still armed with bombs, I ended the boy’s life.” 

He stared at his unmoving hands, inadvertently catching some of the tears as they fell from his face.

"I don't know why I'm feeling like this, it was the best thing I could do, to refrain would have meant the death of countless people.”

The tears ceased falling but he remained in the same position, head bowed, hands cupping the tiny pools of drying tears.

"I've killed many, many times for the greater good, to protect those in the present and those of the future. Sometimes the few must be sacrificed to save the majority from greater suffering.”

He clenched his hands into fists, squeezing the purple liquid out of his hands.

“In my life, I have made many mistakes that I deeply regret and I wish I could alter, but I would not change the choice I made. I know it was the right thing to do, there was no alternative."

His voice caught in his throat.

"Then why does it feel like there was another way?"

He looked up at Dr. Slug, pleading, searching desperately for answers to alleviate his anguish.

"Why does this feel like a mistake? Why am I reminded of all the other mistakes I’ve made when I remember it."

He slipped off the desk and sank to the ground without faltering in his speech.

“I’ve always done the best I could to protect those who deserve protecting, and to save those who are worth saving.”

His descent stopped once he was on his knees. He whispered, defeated. 

"I can't stop seeing his face."

He stared up at Dr. Slug, eye unseeing as huge purple tears gushed down his face like great sticky globs of syrup. His face was empty of anything other than despair. He looked absolutely crushed, the most heartbroken person Dr. Slug had ever seen.

Surprisingly, Dr. Slug felt rage burn within him like he had never felt before. Rage at the heroes who failed to stop the bombs in time, rage at the young scientist who let himself be manipulated so easily, and rage at the villain who created the plan that forced White Hat to make that final decision, a decision he should never have been forced to make, that no-one as good as White Hat should ever make. 

He wished he had been there and abruptly halted that direction of thoughts. He was no hero, it was not his fight. If White Hat wished to make it his business to help and defend others, that was his problem, and Dr. Slug would help design the tools he wished for as long as he was paid for it. 

But looking at White Hat, Dr. Slug felt something inside him twist. He wanted to help, which was shocking to him. He was never good with comfort. He wished Clementia was here and considered leaving to get her, but he couldn't bring himself to leave White Hat alone, sobbing in the dark. 

Taking a few steps forward, he dropped to the floor next to White Hat and crouched next to him. White Hat didn’t respond, and the sticky tears continued to stream down his face.

Mustering his courage and murdering his doubts, Dr. Slug joined him in kneeling on the ground and wrapped his arms around White Hat, not trusting himself to speak. He closed his eyes and waited for White Hat’s reaction, mortified for letting himself do this and also terrified of being rejected. 

Just as Dr. Slug was considering shoving White Hat to the ground and fleeing the room, he felt White Hat move and readjust his arms until he was returning the hug.

Dr. Slug opened his eyes to see White Hat smiling at him. The smile only stayed for couple seconds before wavering and dissolving back into overwhelming sorrow. He pulled Dr. Slug closer, weeping into his shoulder and clutched him as hard as he could without injuring him.

Dr. Slug knew there was no way he was washing out the stains from those tears and he would have to burn these clothes later, but it was worth it.

There they remained in that moment, one comforting the other, one clinging to that comfort like it was the last thing anchoring him to this world, and both waiting for the other to make the first move to end it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got the idea for this late at night a few weeks ago, basically wondering about how heroes sometimes have to make really hard decisions where they are left with no other choice than to to sacrifice one life to save many others. Any good person is going to feel really guilty and bad about what they've had to do in the past, and it often comes back to haunt them from time to time, especially when something similar happens in the present. Then I thought this would totally happen to White Hat. Then I realized this would be the perfect opportunity to get Dr. Slug to voluntarily hug him, cuz hugs give me life. Thus, this chapter was born.
> 
> Also, since White Hat is basically Black Hat but inverted, my sister and I decided that since Black Hat has green spit (and assumingly green tears) White Hat should have purple spit and tears, cuz that's fun :3
> 
> Btw, Studio Ghibli tears for the win!!


	4. Aviophobia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I like to think that Dr. Flug absolutely adores planes. Therefore, Dr. Slug is absolutely terrified of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's 2 a.m. and I have to get up it less than five hours but I'm most likely not going to be able to write for the next few weeks so I decided to stay up and write this. I'll probably edit this because, like I said before it's 2 a.m. and my editing skills aren't exactly up to par (I think, I'm not entirely sure) but I did my best and it was fun. This one is even longer than the last and I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Really fast, I want to thank everyone again for their AMAZING comments and feedback. You guys are awesome, and a lot of the reason I'm able to stay motivated and keep writing. Thank you so much! :)

“Dr. Slug!”

Dr. Slug looked up from his work desk to see an overexcited White Hat leaning through the doorway to his lab with one hand on the doorframe and the other holding the rim of his hat. 

“We’re going on a trip! Pack your bags, we leave in an hour!” With that, White Hat swept out of the room without giving Dr. Slug a chance to respond. Slug looked back at his desk and groaned. He had just started sketching out a design for a new death ray, or, “a self defense tool” which is what he would call it in front of White Hat. But he knew that once White Hat was gone, he was gone, and there was no way he was running out of his lab to chase White Hat all throughout the house just to yell at him to give him more time. 

With a sigh, Dr. Slug stood up from his chair and stretched, wincing as his back gave out a few sharp cracks. It had probably been about four and a half hours since he last stood up and moved. 

Trudging over to his door he took a moment to look back and scan over his lab.

It was an absolute mess. Empty chip bags, crushed soda cans, and other pieces of trash were scattered across his floor, shelves, and various work stations. There was even a table lying on its side in the middle of the room from a few days ago when Dr. Slug had accidentally flipped it on its side in a moment of inspiration as he dove to scribble down his ideas on his writing desk. 

Looking to the back of the room he noticed that his chemical desk was in just as bad shape as the rest of the lab. Half-mixed potions and other experiments lay abandoned upon it, and he noticed a few dangerous chemicals lay uncorked and were set perilously close together. If any of the solutions on his desk were mixed, the chances of a devastating explosion occurring were exceptionally high. 

At the very least, he should probably go clean and organize that desk in particular before leaving, as to avoid any potential catastrophes. 

Another moment passed before he shrugged and left the room, closing the door behind him. Clementia and 6.0.6. rarely ever ventured into his lab, and only if he was inside. Besides, he thought with a smirk, it would be pretty funny to watch White Hat’s reaction after they returned from the trip, expecting his pristine hat-shaped mansion and instead being greeted by a smoldering ruin. His face would be priceless.

At that thought, Dr. Slug stopped, turning around to consider his lab. That almost made it worth it to go back and cook up some sort of time bomb to destroy the mansion during their trip. Almost. 

Walking up from the basement where his lab was located he made his way up through the house to his bedroom. 

He paused with his hand on the doorknob when he realized White Hat had failed to mention exactly how long they would be gone or where they would be going. He had no idea what to pack. 

This time with a mix of a sigh and a groan Dr. Slug opened the door to his room. It was just as messy as his lab, if not more so. Trash covered the floor along with numerous piles of dirty clothes. Slug closed and locked the door behind him, then picked his way across, careful to place his shoes on the few bare spots of floor left. 

As he made his way to his bed, he bent down and grabbed some shirts off the floor that he was sure he had only worn once or twice since the last time he washed them and threw them on the bed. 

It was then that he noticed the clean white duffel bag with golden accents lying on his crumpled covers with a folded piece of paper resting on the top of it.  

He picked the paper off the bag and unfolded it. In looping cursive, he read the following message.

My dear Dr. Slug,  
Firstly, I would like to apologize for how rudely and abruptly I barged into your  lab a few minutes ago, but I have only just received news that our presence is required elsewhere. Our trip should only last for approximately three days, and so I recommend you pack all the necessary materials you require to travel in comfort for that duration of time. I went ahead and filled the duffel bag below with three sets of new clothes and a toiletry bag that I believe holds all the necessary items to maintain your hygiene. Feel free to pack whatever else you feel you need to bring. We will be leaving at 12:45 p.m. Don’t be late!

Love,  
WH

After reading the note Dr. Slug crumpled it in his hand and threw it over his shoulder, not caring to see where it landed. He unzipped the duffel bag and immediately turned it upside down to empty its contents. 

Sure enough, a bunch of clothes and a clear plastic bag containing a variety of materials fell out onto the bed. He picked through the pile and determined that White Hat had given him two pairs of identical  jeans, two plain white T-shirts, three pairs of black socks, three pairs of underwear, one pair of black slacks, and one black button up shirt. 

He picked up the underwear and vaguely wondered how White Hat knew he preferred boxers. Then he looked down at the floor at the piles of laundry and decided it wouldn’t be too hard to come to that conclusion. 

Shrugging, he sloppily threw everything back into the bag except for the slacks and button up shirt, stopping to consider them both. Obviously White Hat put them in there to dress him up for some fancy meeting with a bunch of heroes.

Without a second thought, he dropped both articles of clothing on the floor in a pile with the rest of his dirty laundry and put one of the less dirty shirts he picked up from the floor into the bag. He could just re-wear one of the other pairs of pants. 

He looked at the electronic alarm clock (that he never used) next to his bed to check the time. It was 12:04. Reaching towards his nightstand he grabbed a few paper bags and another pair of goggles to stuff in his bag, along with a few spare parts to tinker with when he got bored. He looked back at the clock. 12:05. 

Now, Slug had a decision to make. With nothing else to do since he had already abandoned his project down in his lab, he could be a good boy and head down there early, thus pleasing White Hat and showing his dedication to his boss and the company.

Snorting out loud at the thought, Dr. Slug instead chose the second option and shoved the duffel bag off of his bed and dove in its place, sticking one arm under his head and kicking up his legs and crossing his left leg over his right knee. He pulled out his ipod and a pair of earbuds. After connecting the earbuds to the device, he picked them up and placed them in his ears. Scrolling through his ipod’s music he pressed shuffle and closed his eyes as Toccata and Fugue in D minor on the organ began playing in his ears. Damn he loved Bach…

...Forty seven minutes later Dr. Slug trudged down one of the two grand staircases that led to the rest of the house with his duffel bag slung over his back to see White Hat waiting for him by the front doors. As soon as White Hat laid eyes on him, he broke out in an enormous toothy grin and pulled back his left sleeve to check the watch on his wrist. 

“Wow Dr. Slug! I wasn’t expecting you this early. It’s only 12:53 and you’re already here!”

Dr. Slug stopped halfway down the stairs. Confused and annoyed at White Hat (as usual) he asked, “What are you talking about? I’m eight minutes late.”

“Not true!” White Hat smiled again. “I told you to be here at 12:45 but I predicted you would not arrive until at least one o’clock, at the latest two thirty. That means you’re are actually seven minutes early! This is splendid!”

In that moment Dr. Slug wished for nothing more than to smack that stupid grin off White Hat’s face but he was already feeling drained by all of White Hat’s positive energy. Instead, he finished walking down the stairs and was about to walk through the front doors when White Hat stopped him, smoothly slipping the duffel bag strap over Slug’s head and off of his body. Before Slug could react White Hat had taken his bag and put it over his own shoulder, smiling proudly at Dr. Slug.

Slug was about to protest when he noticed White Hat wasn’t carrying a bag of his own. 

“Where’s your bag?” Dr. Slug inquired in a low, nearly emotionless voice with a hint of anger, even more annoyed because White Hat was able to steal his luggage away so easily. 

“Oh, I already have everything I need. Now, onward to adventure!”

White Hat flung open the two huge double doors that served as the entrance and exit to his mansion and stepped outside. 

Dr. Slug squinted and hissed as he shrunk back from sudden bright light that invaded the room. Stepping outside he lifted a hand over his goggles to shade his eyes from the sun and noticed that White Hat was already at the end of the walkway that lead down from the house, past the decorative wrought iron fence, and onto the road. He was opening a passenger door to a long white limousine when he looked back up at the house. His bag was nowhere to be seen.

As soon as White Hat noticed he had Slug’s attention, he swung his arm around and gestured into the vehicle, bowing at the waist as he did so. Dr. Slug walked out from under the doorway and felt a breeze against his back as the two doors swung shut behind him. 

Without looking back, he slowly made his way down the walkway and through the wrought iron gate. As soon as he passed through the gate it also swung shut behind him with no prompting. 

White Hat once again gestured towards the inside of the limo. 

“Your chariot awaits.” he said, laughing silently to himself.

Dr. Slug gave him an unamused stare as he stepped into the limo and sat down on the cushy leather seats.  Except for the black window separating the passengers from the driver, the interior of the limo was almost entirely white with blue plastic highlights. It was exactly matched White Hat’s own color scheme of white and blue. He hated it. 

White Hat shut the car door behind him, leaving him alone in the limo. He heard the sound of footsteps and another car door opening and closing. With a soft buzzing noise the privacy window rolled down and revealed the ever-smiling face of White Hat as he called out to Slug. 

“Seat belts!”

Slug rolled his eyes but buckled his seat belt in place anyway. He might be evil, but he wasn’t stupid. The last thing he wanted was to get injured or die in a crash just because he wasn’t wearing his seat belt. 

Once White Hat saw that Dr. Slug was securely fastened in place, he nodded his head and turned on the vehicle. The limo began to whirr as the engine started up, softening to a gentle hum as it waited to move. 

“I hope you will forgive me for driving this vehicle myself in favor of hiring someone else. I do so enjoy these sorts of drives and I find it bad luck to begin a journey with someone else at the wheel.” White Hat smiled apologetically at Dr. Slug through the open window.

Refraining from pointing out that by that logic, White Hat was giving Slug bad luck, Dr. Slug chose instead to respond by leaning forward and pressing the button to roll up the privacy window. 

The window slowly moved towards the ceiled as White Hat hurried to get the next words out before it closed. 

“There’s a cooler with drinks and snacks in the floor, let me know if you need anythi-” the window slid closed, blocking out any sound from the front of the limousine. 

Dr. Slug smiled dryly from underneath his bag. Few things made him happier than harassing White Hat. 

He scanned the floor and noticed a notch in the carpeting. Reaching down he pulled the handle and opened it up to reveal a compartment that was filled to the brim with water bottles, various brands of soda cans, along with some bagged fresh fruit and vegetables. 

Frowning at the health food, Dr. Slug shoved it to the side as he dug through the cooler to search for something sugary. Ah-a! Popsicles!

With a blue raspberry popsicle and caffeinated soda in hand, he retrieved his earbuds and iPod from his pocket and started listening to music while staring out the window, daydreaming about various inventions he could design and more efficient ways to exact vengeance upon those who have wronged him. 

*********

The sound of a jet engine roared in his ears and he started awake, breathing hard. Looking around, hyperventilating, he recognized the interior of the limousine and relaxed. He told himself he was safe inside a car and nowhere near an actual airplane.  Then he looked outside and froze, realizing the latter statement was untrue.

The limousine was driving directly towards an airport. 

He then came upon a second realization; they were going to fly.

Dr. Slug tried to convince himself that this was not the case and that they were only driving by, but it made the most logical sense that they would be taking a plane. It was the fastest mode of transportation unless their destination was in the city they resided in, but it didn’t make sense for White Hat to make him pack for a trip in their hometown. 

He had his worst fears confirmed as the limo turned into the airport and stopped in the drop off zone. He heard the sound of the front car door opening and closing as White Hat left the vehicle. He waited in dread as the sound of his footsteps came closer and closer until his door opened and he saw White Hat smiling down at him. 

“Doctor!” White Hat exclaimed, “You can take your seatbelt off now, it’s time to go!”

Dr. Slug slowly unbuckled his seatbelt. Trembling slightly, he pulled himself out of the limousine to stand next to White Hat. 

White Hat smiled at him once more before beckoning to a young man dressed in an airport uniform. Dr. Slug assumed he was a valet when White Hat slipped him the keys to the limo along with a fat wad of cash.

The boy looked down at the money in his hand, then back at White Hat with a confused look on his face.

Seeing his confusion, White Hat smiled and shooed him away. “Run along then, make sure not to scratch it.”

When he realized that White Hat meant for him to keep cash, he beamed and then rushed over to the driver’s side of the limo. 

Dr. Slug watched him drive away in despair as he was forced to accept that they were going to be taking a plane to wherever White Hat wanted them to go. 

He felt something nudge him and he snapped back to attention, looking straight at White Hat who was offering him his arm.

“Shall we?”

Dr. Slug stared at his arm and sighed in resignation before accepting it. By now he knew that if he refused White Hat would simply carry him and he did not feel like being made a laughingstock in front of all those inside the airport. 

However, he couldn’t help but feel like a lamb being led to the slaughter as they passed through the airport with alarming speed.

They breezed through airport security. The staff member took one look at White Hat and waved them through, allowing them to bypass the long lines, metal detectors, and other security measures.

Before he knew it, they were standing outside facing a sleek white jet with the White Hat’s corporate insignia emblazoned on the side. 

White Hat looked over at Slug with the excitement of a boy about to show off his favorite toy.

“Isn’t it lovely? I thought you might prefer a private flight as opposed to one with people on it. Personally, I love talking to and enjoying the company of all the strangers one meets while flying, but I understand that you don’t like people as much as I do.”

Not liking people as much as White Hat was a vast understatement, but he would rather be faced with thousands of strangers attempting awkward small talk than what he was facing now. 

But he couldn’t let White Hat know. Dr. Slug was a villain and a dangerous one at that, no matter how White Hat treated him, and he was not someone not to be trifled with. He couldn’t let himself show weakness in front of White Hat, which is exactly what he would do if he begged him not to make him go on the plane. The last thing he wanted was White Hat’s pity. The second to last thing was going on that plane. 

“C’mon then!”

White Hat beckoned to Dr. Slug and walked up to the aircraft, climbing up the stairs and disappearing inside. 

Dr. Slug watched him disappear, and after taking a deep breath, he clenched his fists and approached the plane. Gripping the handrails he slowly climbed the steps one by one, forcing his way inside. 

The interior was almost entirely colored the same as the limousine. Everything was white and blue. There were eight luxury white leather seats in total, four of them facing each other across a polished mahogany table nearest to Slug with large cupboards above and behind them.  The other four were further down the plane, a pair of each facing each other with ample leg room between them. White Hat was sitting in the furthest one from the entrance and staring right at Dr. Slug. 

“Come, sit! They’re quite comfortable,” White Hat assured Dr. Slug, patting the seat next to him. 

Dr. Slug quickly crossed the plane, slipping past the mahogany table. He sat down hard in the luxury seat facing diagonal from White and gripped them armrests as if they were the only things keeping him anchored to the earth, sightlessly looking forward.

White Hat was unperturbed by his actions and excitedly waved until Dr. Slug slowly turned his head until he was facing White Hat.

White Hat indicated a few black buttons on the right armrest. 

“Look! You can change your seat to be more comfortable.”

Pressing one of the buttons, White Hat’s chair began to lift his legs in the air and the back of his seat fell back until he was lying down, completely horizontal. He stretched out across the makeshift bed and pretended to fall asleep. Then, pressing another button, the chair began to straighten and return to its original state. 

“You should try it! We have an eight hour flight ahead of us and it won’t do to spend it unhappily.”

Dr. Slug regarded him a little longer before returning his gaze forward and tightening his grip on the armrests.

It wasn’t until then that White Hat began to get the hint that something was wrong. He looked at Dr. Slug with new concern in his eyes.

“Dr. Slug, are you alright?”

Dr. Slug lifelessly rotated his head back towards White Hat, stared at him for a few seconds, and spoke two words:

“I’m. Fine.”

White Hat looked as though he didn’t believe him. 

“Are you sure? You don’t look so good. Can I-”

“White Hat!”

White Hat was startled when Slug raised his voice. Slug continued, with deadly emphasis,

“I’m. Fine.”

“Well, if you’re sure,” White Hat muttered doubtfully, shooting another worried glance at Dr. Slug before pressing another button on his armrest. A panel on the armrest began to slide away, revealing an intercom underneath. He pressed another button and spoke into it. 

“We’re ready for take-off.”

Dr. Slug winced at the words ‘take-off’ and took a shaky breath, causing White Hat to look at him in alarm. With White Hat’s attention on him, he straightened his back and renewed his determination to make it through this flight without showing any more weakness. 

He was feeling pretty confident, until the plane engine started. 

The engine surged to life and Dr. Slug could feel the plan vibrating beneath him, shaking him to his core. 

With a ding, his attention was drawn to the ceiling as the red “Seatbelts” sign lit up, indicating it was time to put their seatbelts on. 

Lightning fast, Dr. Slug pulled his seat belt into place, and as soon as he heard it click he whipped his hand back to the armrest and clenched tight, knuckles beginning to turn white. He paid no attention to his hands and started taking deep controlled breaths, focusing only on his breathing. Just as he thought he had himself under control, he felt the plane start moving and he stopped breathing. 

He gravely turned until he was looking out the window and saw the ground begin to move as the plane got in position for take off. 

He had one brief moment of respite where he could breath normally when the plane stopped to let a different one take-off first. Then his breathing ceased once more when their jet began to move forward, gaining speed. He watched as they began to pass everything on the airstrip with increasing speed, past stationary airplanes and slow-moving luggage trains.

He watched them grow smaller and smaller the further they traveled away from them until he realized that they were no longer getting smaller only because the plane was passing them, but they were also getting smaller because the plane was above them. They were airborne. 

He started breathing again but this time it was neither normal nor controlled. He was hyperventilating, breathing faster and faster as the ground got further away and the plane rose higher into the sky. At some point his breaths changed from short and hurried to deep and desperate, gasping like a fish out of water. He felt he couldn’t get enough air in his lungs and it was making him panic even more. He couldn’t take his eyes away from the window, and he watched in horror as the plane gained even more altitude and the objects on the ground below grew smaller and smaller. 

He felt something warm trickle down both sides of his face. One stream continued straight down his face and dripped off his chin while the other was caught on his lips and fell into his gasping mouth. Slug tasted salt, and with a trembling hand, he reached up under his bag and touched it, pulling his hand out and holding it up to his goggles. He expected to see blood but instead saw nothing but a clear shining liquid on his fingers. Oh, he was crying. 

Then he felt something pull his shoulders and he finally turned to see White Hat with an emotion on his face that he would never have expected to see. 

White Hat looked absolutely terrified. He was moving his mouth as though he was speaking to Slug. Dr. Slug heard sounds but his panicked brain couldn’t translate them into words. Instead, it saw White Hat’s fear and that only amplified its own. Dr. Slug began heave even harder, tears streaming from his face down to his neck.

White Hat tried to speak with him again but Slug couldn’t respond. Eventually the fear on White Hat’s  face was replaced with a look of determination. He walked over to his own seat and pressed the button on the intercom and spoke into it. 

Dr. Slug didn’t know what was happening until he felt the plane losing altitude. A small voice in his head told him that the plane was going down in a slow controlled manner, it must be doing this purposefully, they were going to land safely. But every other part of him screamed that they were going to crash and burn, that there was going to be fire and pain and blood and death and he needed to get away. He began thrashing in his seat. He reached down and unbuckled his seatbelt, ripping it off of him and he raced to the back of the plane.

In an instant, White Hat was with him, restraining him and keeping him from running any farther. Dr. Slug began to fight and kick against White Hat, breathing hard and sobbing harder. White Hat dragged him back to his seat and, with great difficulty, buckled him back in. 

Dr. Slug kept fighting and kicking and punching, the need to escape overpowering everything else he felt. White Hat kept him pinned to the chair, taking blow after blow with no other reaction than to strengthen his resolve and tighten his grip.

Eventually White Hat let go of Dr. Slug, attempting to speak soft words with him. 

But Dr. Slug did not wait to hear what he had to say. He burst from his seat and ran to the back of the plane. The stairway was open and led back down to the ground.

Slug scrambled off the plane, tripping on the last two steps and falling on all fours to the asphalt. He stayed there, taking deep gulps of air and sobbing as the tears fell from his eyes, dropping onto the lenses of his goggles. 

He hated this. Why did he have to be so WEAK. It was just a stupid plane. Just a stupid plane. Just a-

He gasped when he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see a concerned White Hat staring down at him. White Hat crouched down and wrapped his arms around Dr. Slug. 

Dr. Slug hesitated for only a moment before returning the hug, clutching White Hat’s shoulders and sobbing into him, feeling his bag wrinkle and become damp as it was pushed against his face and his tears. They stayed like this for several minutes, Slug crying into White Hat and White Hat holding him without words. 

Ironically, it was White Hat’s comfort and his own reaction to that comfort that brought him back to sanity. 

As soon as he realized what he was doing, he stopped sobbing and shoved White Hat away. He crumpled his hands against his knees and stared at the ground, refusing to look at White Hat. 

In his peripheral vision he saw White Hat stand up. 

“You could have told me you were scared of planes.”

Without saying anything, Dr. Slug continued to stare downward, willing himself to stop crying, but unable to stop the flow of tears.

“I’m not...scared...of planes.”

White Hat considered these words. 

“I guess that’s true. You’re terrified of them.”

Dr. Slug said nothing, pondering of how strange it was that his body could produce this many tears. At this rate, it was possible that he would die of dehydration if they didn’t stop soon. 

“Dr. Slug.” 

White Hat’s voice had a seriousness to it that forced Dr. Slug to look up at White Hat. White Hat crouched back down to the ground, but instead of pulling him into another hug, he looked right into Dr. Slug’s eyes in a challenging way. 

Dr. Slug stared back, returning the challenge even while tears dripped unbidden down his face.

White Hat took a deep breath, and was about to speak when Dr. Slug interrupted him.

“I wanted to see if I could do it.”

White Hat was taken aback. 

“What?”

Dr. Slug shifted slightly before continuing.

“I wanted to see if I could do it. Travel in a plane. The last time I did it…” Dr. Slug trailed off for a moment, then resumed speaking “It was bad. But that was a long time ago.”

Words began rushing from Dr. Slug’s mouth before he could stop them. 

“Planes have vastly improved since then and besides it’s the fastest form of travel and we need to get to wherever you want us to go and you’re here, you’re a hero, it’s your private jet nothing should malfunction and if it did you would be able to fix it or save us at the very least, everything should be fine I have no reason to be afraid.”

Dr. Slug quickly shut himself up, cursing inwardly. He never should have said all that. He should never have let himself set foot on that plane and become so vulnerable. He was a fool.

White Hat stood up, staring off into the distance. Dr. Slug looked up at him, wondering what he would say next. Maybe he would say something sappy and sympathetic, full of pity and sadness for his poor frightened scientist. Maybe he would ridicule him. Maybe he would fire him for being unable to do something as simple as fly on an airplane. 

“There are faster forms of travel.”

Dr. Slug stared up at White Hat in surprise. “What?”

“There are faster forms of travel.” White Hat looked down at him. “I almost never travel by plane. The only reason I decided to do so was because I felt it would be the most comfortable way to bring you with me on this trip. I was wrong, and for that I apologize.”

Before Dr. Slug could respond, White Hat reached down and offered him his hand. 

“Doctor, have you ever heard of shadowstepping?”

Slug stared at the hand being offered to him. 

“What?”

“Have you ever heard of shadowstepping?”

Dr. Slug studied White Hat’s hand a moment more before grasping it firmly and using it to pull him up from the ground. 

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo boy! That was a ride. 5,700 words. Wowza.  
> I've had some experience with PTSD attacks (I'm not sure if that's the right term but it's too late to google it) and lemme tell you they are the absolute worst. However, I know that what I've got is nowhere near as bad as what I just gave Dr. Slug (hehe) because I also gave him a much more terrible experience then anything I've ever gone through. Also, I know this is supposed to be a bunch of one shots, but I think I'm going to continue this one shot for a couple more chapters. Or I might split it off and make it a separate work entirely. We'll see. 
> 
> I wasn't planning on making Dr. Slug's attack as severe as it was, BUT the more I wrote the more I realized it fit. Don't worry, he'll be back to his good ol' evil self in no time. This next chapter or the one after that will have some mischief that I look forward to writing.
> 
> I'm gonna go to bed now :)
> 
> If anyone wants to listen to the song Dr. Slug was listening to you can here:  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipzR9bhei_o


	5. Shadowstepping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Traveling through an unknown dimension that could potentially drive you insane? Eh, piece of cake. Riding in a plane? Nononononononono. Big no.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My writing style keeps changing as I write more... I should really take a writing class…
> 
> Sometimes I forget to blink while writing and when I remember to it's the freakin' worst. 
> 
> Anyways, sorry it's taken me so long to post, but I just got back from a super long vacation and dived right into surgery (nothing serious, I promise). Luckily, as a result I've been bedridden and able to devote almost all of that time to writing. I'm so happy. I'm going to have to work forever now. 
> 
> I know I've said it so many times, but thank you so much for all your support. I seriously love all of you. Every time I read the comments I cry with happiness a little on the inside (and some tearing up on the outside mixed with joyous giggling).

As soon as he was steady he let go of White Hat and folded his arms against his body, waiting for him to explain.

"Come with me Doctor."

White Hat put his hand on Dr. Slug's back and led him away from jet. Normally Dr. Slug would flinch away from any sort of contact out of spite but these were not normal circumstances. 

White Hat didn't stop until they were standing in the shadow of the airport, far from any aircraft. Dr. Slug could still hear them moving around and taking off occasionally, but he distracted himself by studying the surrounding area. That’s when he noticed there were no security cameras in the area they were in, and he couldn’t see any other person around airstrip. They were completely alone. 

Without warning, White Hat turned, placed both his hands on Slug's shoulders, and stared straight through his goggles where his eyes were.

Dr. Slug was stunned to see him so serious. His smile was missing like it was on the plane, but instead of showing worry and fear, his eye was studying him intensely. Dr. Slug felt as though White Hat could see his eyes behind the goggles but reassured himself they were opaque from the outside. 

"Dr. Slug." He hesitated, and Dr. Slug got the feeling he was choosing his next words very carefully. 

"Shadowstepping...is my main method of travel. It is the easiest and fastest way to go from one place to another that I have found so far, at least for myself. But it is also the most dangerous."  
White Hat's expression intensified even further as he continued.

"If you wish to come with me through the shadows, I need you to follow my directions exactly or else it may be decades before I find you again and even longer than that to restore your sanity. Only a select few others have done this with me, and I wouldn't ask this of you except it is very important for us to make it to our destination without delay and I have complete faith that you can do it."

"I will not force you to go. At worst, I will be in for a very inconvenient next few months if you do not. But,"

With these next words, White Hat reached out and clasped both of Slug's hands in his, face enveloped with earnest caring. 

"-my dear doctor, believe me, your safety and good comfort are my primary concern. If you are unfit for travel, I completely understand, and I will personally escort you home ."

By now Dr. Slug's curiosity was peaked. "Shadowstepping" was obviously something very unique, and, according to White Hat, something very few people had ever experienced aside from White Hat himself. Regardless of its dangers, it would be fascinating experience, one that Dr. Slug was eager to try. And, a small voice in the back of his mind whispered, that, for some reason, White Hat trusted him enough to reveal this part of himself to him. White Hat constantly tried to hide his more "inhuman" qualities, and very rarely did he ever use his powers in view of others. For him to offer to take Dr. Slug along in this otherworldy way, it showed that Dr. Slug was special to him. An even smaller voice said that it wouldn't involve airplanes, and Dr. Slug hurriedly pushed both thoughts away to the back of his mind.

Shoving White Hat's hands away and returning his own to their former folded position, Dr. Slug shrugged.

"Sure, why not." He said nonchalantly, his usual apathetic manner masking his anticipation. 

White Hat beamed at him, his smile bursting through his seriousness, and Dr. Slug caught a quick flash of relief pass over his face before it disappeared. 

"Fantastic! Now, first things first, I need you to hug me."

All of Dr. Slug's excitement evaporated with those words. 

"WHAT?!"

White Hat quickly realized his mistake and hurried to calm the doctor down.

"Excuse me, Dr. Slug, allow me to explain." 

He turned and faced the plane.

"In order to shadowstep, all I do is walk into a shadow."

To demonstrate, he walked forward facing away from Dr. Slug and disappeared. He was only gone for a second before he phased back into view, this time facing towards Dr. Slug. He was still smiling and Slug fought the urge to rub his eyes in disbelief. 

"You see Doctor, I just visited the "Shadow Dimension." Using it, I can travel all across the world in only a matter of seconds, as long as there is a shadow of adequate size to receive me. Time passes very differently in the Shadow Dimension compared to this world, but you shouldn't notice a difference. In addition the memories mortals make there tend to fade and disappear once they re-enter the regular world.”

"In order to bring another through with me, we must be in close physical contact to ensure that they do not get lost along the way."

White Hat hesitated again.

"Doctor, do you remember how I said this was dangerous?"

Slug made a face behind his mask.

"Of course."

"Well, the reason that it is so dangerous is because there are other beings in the shadow dimension, but unlike me, they are unable to travel between worlds . Also unlike me, they are not very friendly, and will do everything in there power to attempt to trap you there. They will call to you in all voices, familiar and unfamiliar. They will make fantastic promises and terrifying threats. They may even use my voice to do it. If your eyes are open, they will show you visions that will drive you to insanity. But the one thing they cannot do, is touch you."

In an instant White Hat's face became even more intensely serious then it was before.

"Doctor, you must promise me that when we go through, you will not let go of me. You will shut your eyes and not open them for anything, even if I am telling you to do so, because it will not be me. You will keep walking and not stop until I stop, which I will only do once we have made it through. You must promise me these things otherwise I will not let you come with me. If you do not adhere to them-"

"I'll get lost for decades and lose my sanity," Dr. Slug interrupted in a dry, unamused tone.

White Hat stared at him for a moment but quickly regained his composure.

"Yes, you are correct. I'm glad to see you were paying attention. It might sound scary, but as long as you follow all of those rules, you'll be completely safe."

White Hat grinned supportively then pressed his eyebrows together in concern.

"I'm sorry if it makes you uncomfortable, but I must insist you wrap both arms around me as tight as possible. Don't worry, you won't hurt me."

With the last sentence, White Hat gave him a patronizing smile that Dr. Slug strongly resented. 

But he had a questions to ask and he wasn't going to compromise his answer by sassing White Hat. So he just swallowed his pride and asked them.

"What are those beings? Why do they want to trap me? Or anyone? Why don't they try to get you to stay? Do they try to trap you?" He asked each question with rapid fire speed, knowing White Hat would eventually answer all of them.

White Hat opened his mouth to reply, then stopped and closed it. His eye looked away from Slug and stared off in the distance. After a short while then returned his gaze to Dr. Slug and spoke.

"They do try to ensnare me as well, but seeing as I am neither from this world or theirs, I can resist their efforts fairly easily."

Dr. Slug started at that information, then scolded himself for being so surprised. He knew White Hat wasn't human. It made sense that he wasn't from Earth. 

White Hat continued without noticing his reaction. 

"I'm not entirely sure why they do what they do, but I can think of two explanations. The first is that they don't like it when people travel through their world and they want to punish those who dare enter their realm by driving them insane. The second...is that they want to feel real."

"What do you mean?"

White Hat took a deep breath and sighed, staring back off into the distance. Dr. Slug could tell he was struggling to come up with the words to explain his statement. 

"These beings...do not have matter, not like you and me. Like shadows, they are two dimensional, and they can only mimic that which does have matter. It's possible that they wish desperately to act in a way that does not mirror the "real" world, which they can do by affecting those who are from this world. By forcing travelers astray, they can prove that they are real, that they can do something other than mimic that which has already been done."

Dr. Slug thought about it. Both explanations made sense to him. He hated it when anyone came into his room, particularly when they messed with his stuff. Before coming to White Hat's manor he had killed for less, back when it was necessary to send a strict mess-with-me-and-die message to everyone he met. 

As for the second explanation, he couldn't imagine anything worse than not being able act for himself, only being able to mirror the things other people did. He might forget he was real too.

"Ready?"

Dr. Slug snapped out from his thoughts and looked at White Hat. He was staring at Slug with an expectant grin on his face, like an excited puppy waiting for a treat. 

"Sure."

"Good. Now," The excitement lessened slightly, "promise me, you will never let go of me, you will not open your eyes, and you will not listen to anything the voices say, even if it's my voice saying it. Do not stop walking until I stop."

"I promise."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Positive?"

"Yes."

"You are absolutely-positutely-"

"YES LET'S JUST GO!"

White Hat did not look confused or chagrined at all at being interrupted that time. Instead he grinned happily and extended his left arm to Dr. Slug, motioning for him to come closer. 

"C'mon then. I wasn't kidding when I said you needed to hug me!"

Dr. Slug grudgingly walked over and hesitantly put his right arm around White Hat's back.

"Both arms, Doctor."

Before Dr. Slug put his other arm around White Hat, he glanced up to look at White Hat's face, and immediately regretted it. The smug son-of-a- looked like he was enjoying this way too much, staring down at Dr. Slug and smiling hugely. Even his eyeglass seemed to be sparkling with humor next to his eye.

Dr. Slug quickly looked down and put his left arm around White Hat's front, clasping his hands together. 

As soon as he did that White Hat put his arm down around his shoulders and squeezed in a friendly manner. 

"Try to hug me a little tighter, my friend, we must make sure you don't get taken by any shadow monsters!"

Dr. Slug tightened his grip on White Hat, feeling his bag crinkle against his face and told himself he hated this. That there was no part of him that enjoyed the physical contact, that enjoyed being this close to White Hat. That noticed the unknown yet vaguely pleasurable scent that drifted up from White Hat’s clothes and made its way up through his bag to his nose. Then he imagined shooting that nonexistent part of himself with a machine gun. Nope.

White Hat seemed to sense his discomfort and chuckled slightly, before turning towards the airplane, where the shadows were darkest.

Immediately his mood began to darken with them, and he squeezed Slug's shoulder one more time before speaking.

"Close your eyes."

Dr. Slug was about to follow his instructions but a thought struck him and he checked the watch he kept on his left wrist. 3:27. After chanting the number a few times in his head to make sure he didn’t forget it, Slug quickly shut his eyes tight, and readjusted his arms around White Hat.

"Remember, do not listen to anyone, not even me, don't open your eyes for anything, don't stop walking until I stop, and whatever you do. Don't. Let. Go."

Dr. Slug nodded, feeling his bag moved against his face, and hugged White Hat even tighter, turning his face into his side.

"And we're off!"

After a couple seconds Dr. Slug felt a wave of cold pass over his body. The first thing he noticed was the complete lack of sound. He had become used to the background noise of the airport and the other noises the world made that people rarely stopped to listen to. But, now that it was gone, he couldn't help but note its absence.

"Dr. Slug! Quick, open your eyes, it's beautiful."

Slug couldn't stop the shiver down his spine when he heard White Hat's voice call out to him. He ignored it and kept walking with his White Hat, the real one.

"Hurry! You're going to miss it."

"..."

"Dr. Slug, as your superior, I order you to open your eyes now!"

Okay, this was easy. If he had a dollar every time he ignored one of White Hat's orders, he would be up a thousand bucks, and counting. Not only that, but it was fun too. He could ignore White Hat all day.

As if the spirits around him read his mind, the voice immediately changed.

"Sluggie! Can I drink this? I found it in your lab. It's all purple and bubbly, is it some sort of soda?"

Again, Dr. Slug ignored the voice of Clementia that sounded out in front of him. When it appeared again, it came from his side.

"I'm going to take your silence as a yes!"

He heard the sound of drinking and immediately the sound of choking followed after it.

"Slu-*cough*Slu-Sluggie, *cough cough*, wha- what did you do to me? What is this stuff?!"

The voice had fallen behind him, and the coughing kept going sounding more and more desperate and painful the further they walked away.

“It hurts..please, make it stop.”

Dr. Slug clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. He would not turn back. He would not turn-

"HELP ME!!!" 

Slug couldn’t help but flinch into White Hat as Clementia’s voice exploded right against his ear. It was composed of pure agony and fear. But he steeled himself and kept walking.

The voices kept changing as they walked. Some asked for help, some begged for mercy, some promised vengeance and some taunted him. Called him weak for relying on White hat, for trusting him. Told him to stop being a coward and face them straight on. His only response was to strengthen his grip on White Hat and keep moving forward.  
The flurry of voices ceased without warning, and while Slug was grateful for the silence, he kept his guard up and remained wary. White Hat was still walking, so that meant they hadn’t found the exit yet.

The silence dragged on and Dr. Slug could feel his patience eroding away. Yes, White Hat was still walking, but nothing had happened for so long, if something didn’t happen soon he was going to do...something...nothing. Ugh.

“Hey there my little braniac.”

Dr. Slug felt as though he just got sucker punched. All the air left his lungs and suddenly he couldn’t breath. He knew that voice, that woman, but it couldn’t be.

“I’ve missed you so much.”

It was obviously a trick. Somehow the spirits had dug into his past and found her in his memories. But it was from so long ago. 

“We’ve been looking for you.”

We? Who did she mean by-oh no.

“Hey there Sport, *ahem*, excuse me, I meant to say the smartest kid of the century. How’ve you been?”

Don’t answer. Don’t answer don’t answer don’t answer don’t answer.

“Oh c’mon, surely you haven’t gotten too smart to say hi to your pa?”

Silence. It was the only thing protecting him now. Only once had he felt this vulnerable, but he was stronger than he was then, and smarter. He could get through this.

“Please, I know you’re scared.” It was the woman again. “But you need to be brave. Say something, please anything.”

He was deaf, blind, mute. He heard nothing, saw nothing, he couldn’t speak. That was the lie he kept telling himself.

“Son, it’s okay to be afraid, but if you don’t open your eyes soon…” the man stopped, unable to continue.

“We may never see you again,” the woman finished. “So please, for our sake, for your sake, open your eyes, say something, anything!”  
Soon. They said soon. That meant they were almost to the exit. 

“Please baby, for me.”

He didn’t know what would have happened in that moment if White Hat didn’t suddenly give his shoulder a squeeze just like he had before they entered. Oh yeah. White Hat was here. How could he have forgotten?

Dr. Slug let the voices transform into background noise as he focused on holding White Hat. He took a deep breath, grateful for the unusual scent to distract him from what was happening around him. Was it roses? No, too sweet. Was it a flower? No, it smelled fruitier than that. Peaches? That wasn’t right either. Everytime he attempted to name the scent it seemed to immediately change to something different. Strange. 

Finally, after what felt like hours, he felt warmth flow over his body and the cold dissipate behind him. 

One the cold had completely vanished, White Hat stopped walking. Slug felt his arm lift from his shoulders. 

"Dr. Slug, we've arrived." 

Slug hesitated before opening his eyes. It was night time. They were in a tiny dark alley but White Hat quickly escorted him into the street. Countless lights shone around them as herds of people walked by, speaking a language that was not English. He soon recognized it as French.

He checked his watch. 3:29. They had traveled a thousands of miles in less than two minutes.

"You can let go of me now if you so wish."

Dr. Slug ripped himself off of White Hat, then began brushing clothes off calmly. 

White Hat watched him for a short time before asking him a question.

"How was it?"

Dr. Slug stopped brushing himself off to consider the words he would say next. Already the memory of his journey through the Shadow Realm was fading. How could he describe it? It was...terrifying? Awesome? Exhilarating? Horrifying? The most difficult experience he had ever gone through. He didn't know. He didn't know how to feel.

"Eh, it was alright."

White Hat seemed satisfied with that answer and was about to move on before Slug stopped him.

“White Hat?”

“Hmmm?”

White Hat looked down at Dr. Slug expectantly with a twinkle in his eye. If anything, he seemed energized by the journey, and slightly impatient to move forward.

“Is it possible, for the ghosts of people who died here to have gone to the Shadow Dimension.”

In an instant, all that energy was sucked from White Hat’s expression. When he did speak, his voice filled with warning.

“Dr. Slug, what you are saying is very dangerous. Whatever you heard in there was precisely engineered by malevolent spirits to drive you from safety and steal your sanity.”

Unsatisfied by his answer, Dr. Slug continued to wait for White Hat to answer his question. 

White Hat groaned unhappily, but complied.

“I don’t think so, but to answer your question, yes, it is ‘possible’, but very unlikely. I wouldn’t wish such an existence on even the worst enemies I have ever faced. I refuse to believe that any person with even a speck of good in them would be condemned to such a fate after death.”

Well, that answered his question. With a mental sigh, he let go of the memory of his mother’s voice.

“What now?” He asked White Hat, summoning his driest most unimpressed tone of voice he could manage.

The spark zoomed right back into White Hat’s eye as he grinned joyfully.

“Why, can you not guess?”

Dr. Slug raised any eyebrow that he knew White Hat could not see.

“To adventure, of course!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> White Hat did the perfect thing by distracting Dr. Slug from anything plane related by introducing the new and fascinating concept of Shadowstepping which he knew would completely capture Dr. Slug's attention. Unlike Black Hat (at least, I highly doubt Black Hat has or would ever do something like this), White Hat has spent lots of time trying to understand and relate to humans in order to help them better. He definitely recognized Dr. Slug's condition as PTSD, and knew what to do after that. (At least, distracting myself helps me ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯) He also just really wants Slug to get there ASAP.
> 
> I have no idea where White Hat’s mansion/ home city is located, but I don’t want to assign them somewhere, so I just played around with time zones and locations and I think it’s believable enough/possible for wherever they were to be really far from France (Also, nightime in France is absolutely gorgeous, and I can’t wait to write a little about it in the next chapter. Travel goals!!!). I was originally going to put them in China, but then I realized I knew nothing about China compared to some other countries, so France it was!
> 
> Anyways, merci d'avoir lu! (Thanks for reading!) <3


	6. Quick announcement

IMPORTANT!!!!!!

Due to a bunch of reasons, I've decided to change the names of the characters in this fic. I won't be changing the names in the chapters that I've already posted. White Hat is still White Hat, but now Clemencia will be Lumencia, Dr. Slug is Dr. Zug, and 6.0.6. will be 6.2.4. Their personalities are exactly the same (except now Dr. Zug likes trains *queue train meme*). Only their names have changed. I got these names from the post below, feel free to check out the artists involved, they're super cool. 

http://themcnobody.tumblr.com/post/169118339539/themcnobody-me-theinsanefruitloop-chan

I don't want to get too into the details, but one of the main reasons I made this change is that I tried switching their names in my conversations about them with my sister and we both found that we actually like them a lot better than the originals. It was hard at first, but eventually we both got used to it.

A HUGE thank you out to the people who answered my call for help. I cannot express how much I appreciate all of your support, and it finally made me feel comfortable enough to make a decision. You all are wonderful amazing lovely people and I love you. <3

If anyone has any questions or wants me to elaborate on exactly why I made this change, feel free to comment below and I will answer them and, if applicable, add that answer to the explanation here. 

Thanks for reading!


	7. L'Hôtel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They're in a hotel. In Paris. *Jazz hands*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm alive! Sort of. ;)
> 
> If y'all haven't noticed yet, I re-arranged some of the stories so that the one-shots are all in the beginning so that the main story can be read chronologically. Hopefully that will make everything easier to read.
> 
> Thank you so much again for all the wonderful comments, kudos, bookmarks, views, and just for reading. You guys make me so happy, sometimes I feel like I’m about to asplode (misspelling intended).

By “adventure” White Hat meant a hotel. Upon arriving, the front desk was more than happy to give them their room even if they were eight hours early. There are perks to being a world-famous hero, Zug figured. After checking in White Hat left Dr. Zug in their room while he returned to the airport to retrieve his bag, leaving Zug with nothing else to do other than explore. 

Of course White Hat had reserved the presidential suite. Dr. Zug had expected nothing less. Everything in the suite was practically oozing with classical elegance. The entire apartment was themed white and gold, and every wall was decorated with some expensive-looking painting or other work of art. No area was spared from the overabundance of luxury. Even the bathrooms had their own crystal chandeliers hanging over steaming jacuzzis. 

By the end of his exploration, Dr. Zug had discovered: two bedrooms, each with their own bathroom and walk-in closet; a living room with three couches placed around what appeared to be a modern art piece that he assumed was supposed to function as a coffee table, all in front of a huge flat screen TV; and a dining room with a polished marble table with matching plush chairs. The dining room had huge windows and glass doors that led out to a balcony overlooking the whole city, including a direct view of the Eiffel Tower. 

Everything was far too fancy for Dr. Zug’s tastes, but besides the jacuzzi the suite did have one other redeeming feature: the furniture was all absurdly comfortable. So comfortable that he had even considered stealing a chair or two but decided against it, finding no conceivable way to convince White Hat to shadowstep a piece of furniture back to the mansion, plus he was far too lazy to steal and ship it there himself, so the couches would have to stay.

With nothing else to do, Dr. Zug flopped himself onto the couch directly across from the TV and put his feet up on the coffee table. He turned it on and what looked like the local news began playing. It was entirely in French but Dr. Zug didn’t feel like changing the channel. 

Just as the news cut to a reporter documenting a battle between a villain and a hero, neither of whom Dr. Zug recognized, he heard someone knocking on the front door. Tearing his eyes from the screen he craned his neck towards the door, weighing whether or not it would be worth moving to see who it was. 

“Dr. Zug!” he heard White Hat’s muffled voice call out from the other side of the door. “May I come in?” 

He moved his gaze back to the TV screen and settled back into his position on the couch. Knowing White Hat, he would just let himself in. 

Just as expected, after less than a minute of silence excluding the sounds coming from the TV, he heard the sound of the door being opening and White Hat walked in.

“Ah! Dr. Zug! I’m so glad to see you’re still awake!” 

Dr. Zug ignored him and continued watching the TV. The reporter was fearlessly holding her ground even as lasers and bullets flew around her. Dr. Zug was mildly impressed at the reporter’s grit. She must have had some experience with this sort of thing before not to immediately flee the premises or be shaking with fear. Unless...

A body stepped in front of the television and Dr. Zug narrowed his eyes at White Hat in annoyance. 

White Hat only smiled and tossed his bag on coffee table. Zug didn’t even bother glancing at it. 

“I hope you don’t mind, but I glanced through it on my way over.”

Dr. Zug rolled his eyes underneath his paper bag. 

“Of course I don’t mind you looking through my personal belongings.” he dryly replied. “It’s not like I enjoy having privacy or anything like that.”

“Excellent!”

Dr. Zug sighed externally. He still couldn’t tell if White Hat was really that dense or if he deliberately ignoring his sarcasm. Most likely the latter. Who knew.

Ignoring the sigh, White Hat continued, “I noticed you left out the dress clothes I packed for you.”

Now Zug groaned. He was hoping White Hat wouldn’t notice their absence until much later in the trip, when it was far too late to get them back. That was before he knew White Hat could disappear and reappear anywhere in the world within seconds.

“You probably didn’t realize they were important which is why you left them out, but have no fear!” 

With a flourish, White Hat pulled an outfit on a hanger from seemingly nowhere and presented it to Zug. 

Dr. Zug blinked in surprise. He was expecting the same getup from before, but that was not what he was seeing now. 

In place of the plain black shirt and pants, he was greeted with a real suit: black with a white button up undershirt tucked underneath the coat with a grey cumberbund and smooth black slacks. There was even a red bowtie slung around the neck of the hanger. The only thing that was missing was shoes.

“Oh!, and don’t you worry, I didn’t forget shoes!” 

White Hat excitedly held up a pair of black oxfords and thus, the suit was complete. It was exceedingly fashionable and appeared very expensive. Like all the other clothes White Hat had given him, it looked as though it would easily fit him. Dr. Zug vaguely wondered how he came up with a replacement suit so quickly, but brushed it off. It’s not like it would matter. 

“I am not wearing that.” Zug stonily declared, folding his arms defiantly. There was no way he was going to let himself be dressed up and paraded around like some prized pet. 

White Hat’s expression fit one of kicked puppy. Dr. Zug felt a flicker of regret for shutting him down so abruptly but swiftly snuffed it out, strengthening his resolve. He didn’t care about White Hat’s feelings. Not even a little bit.

White Hat looked at the suit then back at Zug. “Please?” he tried hopefully, giving Dr. Zug puppy dog eye(s). 

The doctor raised a judgmental eyebrow, refusing to be swayed by such a cliché approach. 

White Hat pouted, sensing the unseen eyebrow, and turned his gaze back to the suit. They sat in awkward silence. Dr. Zug watched White Hat’s face change from pouty to reluctant. He seemed to be wrestling with some idea that he did not like. 

Whatever it was, it must have won because after a few moments of resistance he spoke.

“What if...we made a deal?”

This perked Dr. Zug’s interest.

“What sort of deal?” Dr. Zug prodded cautiously, waiting for White Hat to make a proposal. He wanted to see how much White Hat was willing to give before pushing him further.

“How about…” White Hat hesitated, struggling to say the next few words. “If you agree to wear this suit...I’ll let you create whatever invention you desire, no restrictions.”

No restrictions! Zug sat up from the couch, swinging his feet off the coffee table. He could build whatever he wanted?!

“Hmmm.” Dr. Zug leaned back, attempting to cover his excitement. “You have to bring me anything I want for it. Anything.” 

White Hat looked as though he already regretted the offer.

“I won’t break the law,” he started, only for Dr. Zug to scoff in return.

“Really? You already let me design anything as long as it’s lawful-” 

“No, I let you design anything as long as it’s not legal and non-lethal,” White Hat cut him off. “This would be different.”

“Where’s the fun in building a legal death weapon? No deal.” Dr. Zug kicked his feet back up on the table and put his hands behind his head, acting completely aloof. But he kept his eyes trained on White Hat, watching for any sign of giving in.

White Hat put a hand on his forehead and pulled it down his face, groaning softly. He paced back forth in front of the TV, occasionally pausing and glancing at Dr. Zug before resuming his path. Finally, he stopped and faced Dr. Zug, gritting his teeth. 

“Fine. I’ll bring you any materials you request.”

Dr. Zug sat back up and was about to say something when White Hat held up a hand. 

“I’m not finished,” he stated, frowning slightly. 

Dr. Zug impatiently gestured for him to continue. 

“I’ll bring you anything you request but only if it’s retrieval doesn’t harm anyone in the process.” White Hat asserted. 

Dr. Zug mulled it over. Seemed fair enough. He tilted his head from side to side, before prodding one last time. “What if they’re villains?” He asked nonchalantly, eyes glued to White Hat to measure his reaction.

White Hat paused, and Dr. Zug watched him struggle over with it. He doubted any villains would have something he needed that he couldn’t get elsewhere or build himself, but it might be fun to sic White Hat on someone he didn’t like for the heck of it. 

“Perhaps.” White Hat responded after a minute, though he didn’t look happy about it.

“I also want this couch.”

“What?” White Hat stared at him, eye wide in shock. “Why?”

“I like it.” Dr. Zug shrugged. “S’comfy.”

White Hat continued to stare at him, bewildered. “I’m not sure where the hotel acquired them from but I’m sure if I asked-”

“I want this couch.” Dr. Zug demanded, pointing down at it for added emphasis. 

White Hat looked at him as though he had just said he wanted to grow wings and fly. 

“You mean this couch specifically, the one you are currently sitting on?” White Hat clarified, confusion visibly increasing by the second. 

Dr. Zug nodded. He knew full well this couch would feel no different than any other of its model, but it would be fun to inconvenience White Hat in this small way. He laughed silently at the thought of White Hat explaining to the hotel employees that he wanted their couch. 

White Hat gave him one last baffled look before holding out his hand. “Fine, I’ll get you this couch and allow you to design whatever you want with whatever you want as long as no innocent lives are endangered in the process IF you wear this tomorrow. ” 

Dr. Zug looked at White Hat. He was maintaining a neutral profile, maintaining eye contact and waiting for Dr. Zug to take his hand.

Zug smiled and reached out, grasping the hand and giving it a firm shake as he did so. “Deal.”

They stood there, for a moment, letting the deal sink in. White Hat was the first to break the silence. 

“Splendid!” He grinned and let go, rubbing his hands together enthusiastically. “This will make things so much easier.” He paused, looking a Dr. Zug a little ruefully. “In some ways.”

“Great,” Dr. Zug cut in impatiently. “Now move. You’re blocking the TV.”

White Hat spun around in surprise.

“Oh, my sincerest apologies!” He loudly exclaimed, giving Dr. Zug a chagrined smile. “I didn’t even notice it was there.”

Dr. Zug didn’t believe him, but rather than prolong the conversation he made a little scooting motion with his hands and White Hat promptly moved out of the way. He was severely disappointed to see that the news had switched to a different reporter talking about what appeared to be rising fruit prices. 

“Actually Doctor, if you don’t mind, there’s something I would like to show you.” 

White Hat strode into the dining room, and Dr. Zug could hear the sound of the doors to the balcony being opened. 

“Hurry, you’re about to miss it!” 

With one last glance at the reporter lifting up a lemon, Dr. Zug pulled himself off the couch and wandered over to the balcony. He noticed that White Hat had left the suit on the dining room table and gave it a distasteful look before going outside.

White Hat was waiting for him. He swept his arms out towards the city in a grandiose gesture.

“I present to you, Paris!”

Dr. Zug walked out onto the balcony. He leaned over, resting his arms on the carved stone rail that kept him from plummeting into the streets below. He had to admit, the view was remarkable. He could see a river (“La Seine” he believed it was called if his memory didn’t fail him) snaking around the city, decorated with glittering riverboats. Each street glowed with its own light and he could see people moving around and strolling from place to place, all enjoying the lovely night. From this height, they all looked so tiny and fragile, like Dr. Zug could crush them all with just a wave of his hand. 

But the most striking view was that of the Eiffel Tower. It was lit up and shone powerfully against the pitch black sky, making the dark seem darker in contrast of the glowing metal.

Beautiful.

...

And that was long enough.

He was about to head inside when White Hat grabbed him by the shoulders and spun him back around to face the tower.

“Wait just a little bit longer, my dearest doctor, it’ll be any second now!”

Dr. Zug noticed that White Hat had failed to relinquish his grip on his shoulders. He grunted unhappily and stared out at the city. He could only stare at something for so long before it got boring.

Just as he was about to make a not-so-kind remark to White Hat, countless additional lights sprang into existence all across the Eiffel Tower, blinking on and off, causing it to sparkle fantastically. It reminded Dr. Zug of a Christmas tree.

Dr. Zug couldn’t help but let out a tiny gasp at the sight. As he stared he felt a small smile creep across his lips. For half a second he was tempted to take his goggles off to admire the view a little better. Then he remembered White Hat and knew he could do no such thing. 

Speaking of White Hat, Dr. Zug glanced at his boss and saw that he wasn’t paying attention to the Eiffel Tower at all. Instead, White Hat’s gaze was fixed on him and he was wearing a fond and slightly smug smile on his face. 

Dr. Zug shrugged out of White Hat’s grip and White Hat let him go after a moment of hesitation.

“S’not bad.” Dr. Zug said. A vast understatement, but he refused to let White Hat know how impressed he was. He made another move to head inside and only took a couple steps before White Hat placed his hand on his shoulder. 

“Just a moment Doctor, I have something to give to you.”

Dr. Zug slowly and reluctantly turned around to face White Hat, shoving his hands in his pockets and slouching to show how much he didn’t want to be there. 

Paying no mind to his body language, White Hat held out his hand to Dr. Zug. It was closed in a fist and appeared to be holding something.

Curious, Dr. Zug held out his hand in return and White Hat dropped a small purple pill into it. 

Dr. Zug examined the tablet in his hand before looking at White Hat.

“Why?” He questioned, gesturing to the pill with his other hand. 

“That is a very strong sleep medication.” White Hat spoke informatively. “Since this is a drastically different timezone than the one we came from, you may want to take that to help you sleep. In addition, it should cover any other effects that you may experience tomorrow as a result of jet lag. It is imperative you get a good night’s rest tonight and are able to function properly. Tomorrow will be a very busy day after all.

“Be certain to take it in bed,” White Hat added hastily when Dr. Zug made another motion to go inside. “It’s very powerful, and you will surely feel its effects within seconds.”

Dr. Zug was tempted to take it right then and there to see how White Hat would react; however, the idea of being carried to unconscious to bed by White Hat was less attractive, so he refrained.

“What’s happening tomorrow that’s so important?” Dr. Zug asked White Hat, dropping the pill in a pocket. 

White Hat hesitated, a flash of uncertainty passing over his face, before he broke out a little-too-casual smile.

“Oh, just something. I wouldn’t worry about it too much.”

“White Hat?”

“Hmmm?”

“You’re a terrible liar.”

“What?” White Hat took a step back, face aghast, with one hand pressed against his chest in offence. “I have no idea what you mean.”

“Whatever you have planned, it’s important enough that you’re willing to use some freaky dark magic or whatever to transport me to another country and then let me invent whatever I want - which you’ve never let me do before - just to wear a fancy suit. Spill it.”

White Hat wavered slightly before trying another smile, this one worse than the last in terms of faked casualness.

“Can’t an employer take their employee out on a nice trip every once in awhile?”

That excuse was so terrible Dr. Zug refused to dignify it with a response. 

White Hat kept smiling at him for a little longer while Zug stared him down before finally giving up.

“Fine. There is...something...occurring tomorrow that is...of some importance...but it would be best for me to wait until then to explain it.”

Dr. Zug scoffed in disdain. “I thought your last explanation was the worst one I’ve ever heard in my life, but congratulations! ” he said sarcastically, morphing his dry tone into an impression of a deathly bored game show announcer, “You’ve just reached an new high score! Would you like to try again or will you just tell me what the heck is happening?”

White Hat groaned unhappily. “Listen,” he tried again, eye silently pleading with Dr. Zug to accept his words. “ I know it’s not ideal but it is truly for the best that I don’t explain everything now. Let’s just enjoy the time we have until that point.”

Dr. Zug was about to insist on answers once more when an idea struck him. 

“Fine, I’ll wait, but only if you let me wear my regular shoes.”

“What?!” White Hat looked down at his red and white tennis shoes with an absolutely horrified expression.

If Dr. Zug actually cared, he might have been offended.

“But they don’t match the outfit at all!” 

“Hey, it’s what I would have worn with the other clothes you gave me, plus the bowtie is already red,” Dr. Zug reasoned, putting his hands up defensively. “Might as well let me have this.”

“Hmph. Fine.” White Hat said, dissatisfied. “But promise me you won’t ask any questions about the event tomorrow. Absolutely nothing.”

“I promise.” Dr. Zug mockingly crossed his heart and raised his right hand to swear it.

“Good.” 

And just like that, the familiar happy smiling White Hat returned. “Well then, I mustn’t keep you any longer. Have a good night and rest well, Doctor.” 

Before Dr. Zug could react White Hat grabbed his hand and kissed it, bowing as he did so, a perfect gentleman. 

Dr. Zug ripped his hand away and shook it, giving White Hat a look before going inside. 

Now he had to scrub his hands before going to bed. Dr. Zug couldn’t help the heat rising in his face as he tried to forget what it felt like to have White Hat’s lips against his skin on as he sped to his bedroom. That sleeping pill was looking more attractive by the minute.

***********************************************************

White Hat chuckled softly to himself as he watched his doctor leave, then turned to view the Eiffel Tower once more. There he remained, continuing to watch the city long after the lights had stopped flickering. Yes, there may have been a few minor bumps along the road, but overall, things were going well.

He felt the smile begin to fade from his face. He wasn’t sure how he was going to explain to his dear doctor what he needed to do tomorrow, but he knew with a certainty that Dr. Zug wouldn’t like it. Not one bit. 

He shook his head and directed his attention to the invisible figure he had spotted when he had first walked outside. They were hanging from the side of an adjacent building, in plain view except for their supposed invisibility. He couldn’t keep himself from laughing. Surely they knew better than thinking such fragile cover would disguise them from his view. 

He flashed them one of his signature smiles and waved enthusiastically from the balcony. The figure started and booked it, rapidly disappearing from view as they fled the scene.

Still chuckling, White Hat returned to the suite. He picked up the suit off the dining room table and as he passed through the living room he picked up Dr. Zug’s bag as well. 

He didn’t stop walking until he reached the door to Dr. Zug’s bedroom. Carefully placing the bag on the floor, he used his now-free hand to knock softly on the door.

“Doctor?”

No response. He could hear the sound of breathing inside but it was slow and steady, different from Dr. Zug’s normal breaths when he was awake.

He tried the doorknob and felt it was locked. He tsked to himself and unlocked it with a wave. Opening the door slightly, he poked his head inside. The lights were off but he could clearly see his doctor sound asleep. He looked at the nightstand and saw a half-full glass next to the bed. 

Good. That meant Dr. Zug had taken his advice. Picking up the bag, he moved inside and placed it at the foot of his bed. Then he walked to the closet and deposited the suit on one of the numerous racks inside. 

He was about to leave when he remembered the glass on the nightstand. Altering his course he walked over to the glass of water and picked it up, carefully avoiding directly looking at the sleeping doctor until he saw the outline of a rectangle where Dr. Zug’s head should be out of the corner of his eye.

He laughed softly to himself. It seemed as though Dr. Zug was so eager to sleep that he forgot to remove the paper bag from his head. White Hat contemplated removing it for him but decided that was too much of a breach in privacy. After all, even while taking the utmost care he might catch a glimpse of his doctor’s face, and even though he yearned to see it he knew there was a reason why Dr. Zug kept it constantly covered. Viewing it without his consent would be such an extreme breach in privacy that White Hat refused to take the chance. 

So, after verifying that the bag wouldn’t serve as a breathing hazard, he left the bedside and took the glass to the bathroom. Conveniently enough, there was a filtered water dispenser next to the sink. He used that to refill the glass and swiftly returned to the bedroom, softly placing the glass in its original place. 

With one last glance and smile at the sleeping form of Dr. Zug, he slipped outside and closed the door behind him, making sure to re-lock it for good measure.

As soon as that was done he glared in the direction of the balcony and where the figure had disappeared, letting his expression of content melt into one of possessive determination. No one was going to take his doctor from him. No one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That sleeping pill isn’t the only thing looking more attractive by the minute ohohoho
> 
> I’m sorry for taking so long to reply to comments. I made a dumb decision not to respond unless I was about to post another chapter but now I realize that was dumb. Now I’ll respond as soon as I see them, whether I'm about to post another chapter or not. 
> 
> I'M MAKING A POSTING SCHEDULE! I've found that I'm happier when I'm writing, so I'm making this schedule to remind me to keep doing it, plus I think you guys deserve it. ;) At least once a month/ on the first Friday of each month, I will update this fic. I’ll try to update it every two weeks but that will all depend on my schedule. And yes, that means I'm updating this Friday (March 2nd) next.
> 
> Thank you for reading! <3


	8. Drink this

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dr. Zug gives White Hat a "drink."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a reference/re-write/parallel to one of the show's comics.
> 
> Guess who totally forgot about her posting schedule until now? Me! Sorry guys, I got hit with a big project (that I still haven't finished) but I thought I would throw this out there. I'm so sorry about that though. This is by far the shortest chapter I've written but it was fun to write. I'll be continuing the main story next but in the meantime enjoy!

“Hey, White Hat.”

“Hmmm?” White Hat hummed expectantly as looked up from his work to see Dr. Zug watching him from across his desk. 

“Drink this.” With that, Dr. Zug offered him a glass beaker. The beaker itself was blackened and was cracked on the bottom, and it held some peculiar green liquid inside. White Hat noticed the scientist was holding it with much more care than he had seen him hold anything else, which was strange for him. The doctor hardly ever paid any mind to what he was holding, treating his inventions like trash and throwing his tools all over the place. 

White Hat glanced at the flask, then at Dr. Zug, then back at the flask. “Why?” he questioned curiously, 

“Just do it.” Dr. Zug deadpanned.

“What is it?” White Hat asked as he reached for the beaker, taking it from Dr. Zug. 

He took a whiff. It didn’t have any special scent. Maybe a little sour, but other than that, that nothing recognizable.

“Doesn’t matter. Just drink it.”

White Hat put the flask right up to his face, rotating it around at the top but careful not to spill any as he examined it on all sides. He put the rim against his mouth and paused, giving Dr. Zug one more confused look. 

Dr. Zug folded his arms, nodding towards the vial meaningfully.

White Hat tilted the bottle up and noticed Dr. Zug lean forward slightly in anticipation. 

White took a sip and stopped, eyebrows shooting up in shock. He examined the flask with renewed interest before swallowing.

“How is it?” Dr. Zug asked, a hint of interest blending in with his usually apathetic tone. 

White Hat studied the flask, twirling it around by the brim. “Not bad,” he said, still surprised by its flavor. “A little too sweet for my taste but that’s okay.”

“Too sweet?!”

Uh oh. It seems he’d offended his doctor. Time to backpedal.

“Well, maybe a little,” he said carefully, considering his words. “But overall I find it quite enjoyable. Honestly, it’s the best human drink I’ve ever had.”

“ENJOYABLE!?!”

Well that didn’t work. It seems he had simply made things worse. 

Before he could attempt a second time to appease his scientist, Dr. Zug slammed his hands on the desk and pointed at the flask in White Hat’s hand. 

“That is the most corrosive and toxic substance known to man! I just barely invented it! How can you call it sweet?!?”

Before White Hat could answer Dr. Zug stormed out of the room, leaving White Hat completely speechless. He looked at the beaker in his hand, then back at the door. Leaning back in his chair he studied the paperwork in front of him and took another sip from the flask as he tried to decide how to feel about the fact that his doctor just tried to poison him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Fun fact: I burned a quesadilla in the process of writing this)
> 
> I might re-write some more Villainous parallels but we'll see what happens. This was just kinda fun. I also love the idea that in the beginning of their relationship Dr. Zug kept trying to kill White Hat. XD (  
> Thank you so much for all of your comments, kudos, bookmarks, and for reading! <3


End file.
